Chapter III

Arrival of Mr. Lucas at Tripoli. — His Reception by the Bashaw. — His Journey to Mesurata with the Shereefs Fouwad and Imhammed. — His Mode of obtaining from the latter an Account of his Travels in the Interior Countries of Africa. — His Return to England.

Mr. Lucas, having taken his passage at Marseilles, on board the St. Jean Baptiste, a small vessel belonging to that port, embarked on the 18th of October, 1788; and on the 25th of the same month arrived in the harbour of Tripoli.

The date trees, which spread themselves like a forest behind the town, and the hills beyond them, which bound the prospect on the South, are interesting objects; but the town itself is built in too low a situation to compose a part of the general scene: for it is scarcely visible at the distance of a mile.

The first appearance of Tripoli may disappoint, by its meanness, the expectations of the traveller; but if he reflects on the nature of a despotic government, ever incompatible with permanent prosperity, he will not be surprized when he finds, on a nearer view, that the city, though the capital of an empire, exhibits through all its extent, the marks of a rapid decay; that its scanty limits, though scarcely four miles in circumference, are too great for its present population; and that its antient castle, though once the pride, and still the residence, of the reigning family, is now a mouldering ruin.

The expected ceremonial of announcing to the Bashaw, which is the title of the Sovereign, and to the Consul of the State, to whom the vessel belongs, her arrival in the harbour, having been regularly observed, Mr. Lucas, accompanied by Mr. Tully, the British Resident, waited on Hadgee Abdrahaman, the Tripoline Minister for Foreign Affairs, who had formerly resided in England as Ambassador from the Bashaw; and having known Mr. Lucas there, received him now with the joy of an old acquaintance, and the cordiality of an intimate friend. Encouraged by this kindness, Mr. Lucas explained to him the object of his mission, and requested that he would present and recommend him to the Bashaw, and to the Prince, his eldest son, who is distinguished by the title of the Bey. The Minister consented; and the next morning was, accordingly, appointed by the Bashaw for the first of these audiences: the morning after was fixed on by the Bey for the latter.

The Bashaw, a short and robust old man, of a fair complexion, a pleasing countenance, and an affable, joyous disposition, received Mr. Lucas with great complacency, and accepted, with much satisfaction, his present of a pair of double-barrelled pistols, mounted with silver; but expressed his surprize, when leave was asked to visit his kingdom of Fezzan: for the journey, he said, had never been attempted by a Christian. Mr. Lucas replied, that he was led to undertake it by the report which he had heard of various Roman antiquities in different parts of the kingdom, and by the hope of collecting a variety of medicinal plants that are not to be found in Europe. The Bashaw appeared to be satisfied, and promised that, on the first opportunity of a safe conveyance, he would give him such aids for the journey as his countenance and protection could afford.

On the next morning Mr. Lucas was presented to the Bey, the Bashaw’s eldest son, a tall and well shaped, but dark complexioned man, in the middle period of life; and was received by him with the engaging politeness for which he is eminently distinguished. The present that was made to him, except that its value was inferior, was similar to that which had been given to his father; and the assurances of the protection and friendship, which he offered in return, were the same in effect with those which the Bashaw had expressed.

Soon after his presentation at Court, Mr. Lucas was informed that some of the principal Tribes of the tributary Arabs had lately revolted from the Government, and were then in actual rebellion; that all the frontiers of Tripoli, on the side of the Desert, were infested by their inroads; that a caravan from the inland country had lately been attacked, and that a Spanish Merchant had been plundered within a few miles of the Capital. Mr. Lucas was also informed, that the Bashaw, who has no regular forces, was preparing to raise, on this occasion, an army of 2,000 men; that as soon as the grass should be high enough to afford the necessary forage for the cattle, which it would be in the month of December, they would begin their march to the frontier, where they would be joined by the troops of such of the Arabs as continued faithful to the Government.

With this army, the collective numbers of which were expected to amount to five or six thousand men, it was hoped that the Bey, by the usual enforcements of predatory war, would be able to reduce the rebellious Tribes to their antient obedience, and to the payment of the customary tribute.

But while, from this expectation, Mr. Lucas waited with impatience for the departure of the army, he was informed that two Shereefs from Fezzan, who were both, as their title announces, descended from the Prophet, and one of whom had married the daughter of the King, were arrived in Tripoli. They came there as Merchants, and brought with them, for sale, a variety of articles, of which slaves and senna were the chief; and as the reverence in which the descendants of Mahomet are held secures their persons from violence, and their property from plunder, they did not think that the restoration of peace was requisite for the safety of their return. It was, therefore, with much satisfaction that the Minister, whose intimate acquaintance they were, received from them an assurance, that if Mr. Lucas could bear the fatigue of the journey, they would take him under their protection, and would be answerable for his safe arrival in Fezzan.

The next morning, in consequence of this conversation, the Shereefs waited upon Mr. Lucas. One of them, whose rank as son-in-law to the King, entitled him to the first consideration, was a tall, thin, copper complexioned man, of too slender a frame for his height, which was nearly six feet, but of an appearance that was expressive of dignity: to this appearance the sedateness of his manners, and the fewness, but solidity of his words were particularly suited. His age was seemingly about thirty-five years, and his name was Mohammed Bensein Hassen Fouwad. The other Shereef was a lively old man, short and thin, and dark coloured, almost to blackness; affable, free, and entertaining in his conversation, and much respected by his companion, to whom he was related. His name was Imhammed, and his age about fifty years.

After many compliments, for which their countrymen are famous, they expressed to Mr. Lucas the pleasure they should feel in presenting him to their King, who had never seen a Christian Traveller, and would be highly gratified by so new a visit. They assured him of every accommodation which their country could afford, and of every proof which they themselves could give of the kindest good will, and of the sincerest friendship. The conference was concluded by a present from Mr. Lucas of a pair of pistols to each, with a suitable quantity of powder and ball, and flints.

The Bashaw, being informed by the Minister of the proposal and promises of the Shereefs, expressed his approbation of the scheme, and sent, from his own stables, as a present to Mr. Lucas, a handsome mule for the journey. The Bey, too, was no sooner acquainted with the arrangements, than he gave directions to a Jew taylor, who had been employed in making, and had just finished his own tent, to wait upon Mr. Lucas, and take his orders for such a tent as would be requisite for his journey.

But while in this manner Mr. Lucas was preparing for his departure, and had bespoke a Turkish dress for himself, and a magnificent robe, as a present, for the King of Fezzan, an apprehension arose in the mind of the Bashaw, that if Mr. Lucas should be taken prisoner by the Rebels, he himself should be reduced to the distressing dilemma of either concluding a disadvantageous peace, or of abandoning the Interpreter of the King of Great Britain to all the insults, and to all the cruelties which those Barbarians might be disposed to inflict.

For this reason, the force of which will be much more apparent, if the respect in which the office of Interpreter in a Mahometan Government is usually held, be considered, he expressed his desire (and in this desire his eldest son, the Bey, entirely concurred) that Mr. Lucas would defer his intended journey till the revolted Arabs should be reduced to obedience, and the peace of the Desert be restored. A few days after this requisition, the Bey began his march with an army of 300 horse and 1500 foot.

The Shereefs were no sooner informed of the obstacle which had arisen to the journey of their intended fellow-traveller, than they expressed as much chagrin and disappointment as Mr. Lucas himself could feel; for they said, that they had already sent word to their Sovereign, that they should soon have the pleasure to present to him a Christian, who had travelled from his native land, (a journey of many moons) with no other view than to gratify his wish to visit him, and to see his kingdom of Fezzan:—that his anger would fall heavily on them, to whom he would attribute the disappointment; and would probably lead him to inflict on them the greatest indignity that Shereefs can endure, that of having dust heaped upon their heads.

Impressed with these apprehensions, the Shereefs waited upon the Bashaw, and offered to be responsible with their lives for the safety of the Christian.

In this unfavourable state of Mr. Lucas’s prospects, an old man of the class of Maraboots (a name which is given to persons of distinguished sanctity) informed the Minister, with whom he had been long acquainted, that he meant, in a few days, to take his departure for Fezzan; and that as the Rebels, in consequence of the march of the Bashaw’s forces, had removed from that part of the country through which he intended to pass, he would engage that, under his conduct, Mr. Lucas should travel in safety.

With this proposal Mr. Lucas, by the advice of the Minister, and with the consent of the Bashaw, had determined to comply, though against his own opinion, for the countenance and behaviour of the Maraboot had suggested suspicions of his sincerity; but while he was preparing for his departure, which was fixed for the Monday following, the Bashaw, on further reflection, concluded that the plan which the Shereefs had proposed would, on the whole, be attended with the smallest hazard.

The scheme of the journey being thus finally settled, the Bashaw, at the request of the Minister, presented Mr. Lucas with a letter of recommendation to the King of Fezzan, of which the following is a translation.

TRANSLATION OF THE BASHAW OF TRIPOLI’S RECOMMENDATION OF M^R. LUCAS TO THE KING OF FEZZAN.

“Praise be unto the Almighty God, and unto our Lord his Prophet Mahommed, whose protection and mercy we crave, and resign ourselves to his holy will: to our Son Sydy Hamed Benmohamed, the great and just ruler over his beloved people; may his days be long and happy. Amen.

“Peace, and the protection and blessing of God, be with you, and preserve you from evil.

“We have to acquaint you, our son, that our friend, the English King, hath sent one of his Interpreters unto us, and desired we would procure him a safe conveyance to Fezzan, where he goes for his own amusement and pleasure; and as we have found a person whom we esteem, and who has promised us to take great care of him, we have consented to let the said Interpreter and his friends[1] go with him to Fezzan. We have to desire that you will shew him and his friends every kindness in your power, and comply with all his wishes; and should he be inclined to go to any other place, you will send proper people to conduct him, and to protect him in every thing; for he is a man of sense, and much esteemed by us; wherefore we recommend him to your care and protection. Peace and the blessing of God be with you: from the Slave of God, Ally Benkaramaly, whose greatness is under the protection of God. Dated in the Moon of Rabeah thénee 1203”—(which corresponds with the month of January, 1789.)

To this rout by Mesurata, though not so direct as the antient passage by the way of the Mountains of Guariano, the Merchants who trade to Fezzan have lately given the preference: for in the first place, they avoid the oppressive contributions, which, even in time of peace, the rapacious tribes of Hooled Bensoliman and Benioleed, who inhabit those hills, have often levied on travellers; and in the next place, they have not only the advantage of sending their heavy merchandize to Mesurata by sea, but have also an opportunity of hiring there, at a much lower rate than at Tripoli, the camels for which they have occasion.

On Sunday the first of February, 1789, at half an hour after eight in the morning, the Shereefs, accompanied by Mr. Lucas, took their departure from the suburbs of Tripoli, where, in a garden which is situated at the distance of three miles from the town, and which belonged to a Tripoline Merchant, who was travelling with them to Fezzan, they and their attendants had slept the evening before.

The caravan was composed of the Shereef Fouwad, and of three other Merchants, on horseback, all of them well armed; of the little old Shereef, who rode upon an ass; of Mr. Lucas, who was mounted on the mule which the Bashaw had given him; of Mr. Lucas’s black servant, well armed, upon a camel; of twelve Fezzaners on foot, but armed; of three Negros and their wives, who had been slaves at Tripoli, but having obtained their freedom, were now travelling to Fezzan on their return to their native country; and of twenty-one camels, with fifteen drivers, each of whom was armed with a musket and a pistol.

That so few camels were requisite in this part of the journey, was owing to the expedient which the Shereefs, with great œconomy, had adopted, of sending their heavy merchandize by sea to Mesurata.

At twelve o’clock, the caravan, whose course was E.S.E. passed through the town of Tajarah, a miserable collection of clay-walled huts, of which some were covered with terrace, and the rest with roofs of thatch: but wretched as the buildings are, the country around them abounds with date trees, among which a few of the olive are intermixed.

At five the caravan encamped for the night upon a sandy eminence. No sooner were the camels unburthened of their loads, than their drivers turned them loose to feed on the stubble of the valleys, and on the brambles of the adjacent hills; but though their freedom is thus given them, they never stray to a greater distance than that of two or three hundred paces from the camp.

The loads in the mean time are piled in a circle, and, except at the narrow opening which forms the entrance, are stowed as close as possible to each other. Within this circle the Merchants and drivers and servants spread their mats and carpets. Here, also, they light their fires and dress their victuals; and without any other covering than their alhaiques or blankets (for very few are furnished with a tent) lie down amidst the heavy dews and occasional storms of rain that fall upon the coast, and sleep as soundly as in a bed: for the wetness of their cloaths, which is often the consequence of this exposure, is little regarded, and from the salubrity of the climate, is attended with little inconvenience.

Mr. Lucas’s tent being spread, the two Shereefs, with three of their friends, took up their quarters with him: and on the first appearance of supper, which was served in a large wooden dish, and consisted of dried meat, and of flour formed into balls, and dressed in steam, they all sat down with the familiarity of near relations, and dipping their right hands into the dish, without either spoons or forks or knives, devoured, with a voracious and disgusting haste, the whole that was set before them.

The conclusion of the meal was followed by the ceremony of washing, which consisted in each man’s dipping his right hand into the same water which his companions had used. Coffee being then brought in, they lighted their pipes, and each of them having drank three or four dishes as he smoaked, they laid themselves down in their cloaths, upon the bare sand, and conversed together till they talked themselves to sleep.

February 2d. The next morning, at day-break, the drivers began to re-load the camels: at eight o’clock the caravan was again in motion; from which time till half an hour after four, they travelled amidst dreary hills of loose and barren sand, where they saw neither man nor beast, neither wood nor water.

A small valley between the hills, from which, to their great annoyance, the shifting sand was continually blown down upon them, was the place of their encampment; a place entirely destitute of water, but from this circumstance they felt no sort of inconvenience, as they had brought with them, in goat skins, an ample store.

February 3d. At half an hour after seven in the morning, they proceeded on their journey, and having emerged from the sand hills about two in the afternoon, were charmed with the sight of olive and of date trees, of large quantities of white thorn, and of the Spanish broom; yet the soil is dry and stoney, and the few fields of grain which present themselves here and there to the eye, exhibit in their scanty and meagre appearance, the marks of an ungracious and sullen vegetation.

On the right or S.E. of their road, at the distance of about twenty miles, the mountains of Guariano and Misselata rise upon the view.—A sight that recals to the mind of the experienced Traveller, and leads him to relate to the stranger, the beauty of the vales, the richness of the lands, abounding in corn and oil, and the fierce inhospitable disposition of the inhabitants, that compels the caravan to turn from their dominions, its direct and antient road, and to take its course among the desolate hills, and dreary wastes of the sandy and barren coast.[2]

A request from the Shereef Fouwad was now made to Mr. Lucas for his consent to encamp that evening in the neighbourhood of an old Arab, his particular friend, with whom he had business to transact, but whose residence was two hours march to the South of their road. They accordingly turned to the South, and about five o’clock, after a tedious and difficult passage among rocky hills, they approached the tents of the Arab. The old gentleman, accompanied by his two sons and a few attendants, came forward to meet them; and after expressing great satisfaction at the sight of his friend, the Shereef, he ordered a tent to be cleared for their reception, and in the mean time conducted them to a mat and carpet, which his servants had spread for them under a hedge; for, notwithstanding the season of the year, the heat was already troublesome. They had not been seated long when their host invited them to their tent, in which a number of mats and carpets were neatly laid.—A sheep was killed, and sent to be dressed for their suppers; bowls of buttermilk were brought for their present refreshment, and barley in abundance was given to such of their cattle as were accustomed to that kind of food; while the camels, as usual, were sent to feed among the hills.

At eight o’clock the supper was brought to the tent, and was placed before them in two large wooden dishes. Of these the first contained the mutton, which was boiled, and cut into small pieces: the other was filled with a boiled paste of dried barley meal, made up in the form of an English pudding, and surrounded with a great quantity of oil. This dish, which was intended as an accompaniment to the mutton, and which is in much estimation at Tripoli, is called bazeen.

While Mr. Lucas tasted of the last, and eat with pleasure of the first of these dishes, and the Fezzaners, with their usual dispatch, were devouring the contents of both, the old man and his sons stood by to supply them with water and buttermilk; for the rules of the Arab hospitality require, that during their meals the master of the house should wait upon his guests.

Feb. 4th. The next morning, at seven o’clock, the entertainment was repeated, with the same marks of a kind and liberal welcome; for the old man is rich in corn and cattle, and having obtained the character of a Musselman Saint, or Maraboot, is, on that account, exempted from the payment of taxes.

After a march of three hours, during which the rout was perplexed, and the eye fatigued by a continued succession of rocky hills, the caravan arrived at the entrance of an extensive and beautiful plain, that every where exhibited a luxuriant growth of olive trees, intermixed with dates.

The next two hours brought them to the sea coast, and to all that now exists of the town of Lebida, where, in the ruins of a temple, and in the much more perfect remains of several triumphal arches, the Traveller contemplates the magnificence of an antient Roman colony; and discovers, in the beauty and fertile appearance of the adjoining plain, the reasons which led them to chuse, for a sea-port town, a situation that furnishes no natural harbour.

Eastward of the ruins, for about five and twenty miles, the soil, though entirely unaided by the poor Arabs who inhabit it, exhibits the same luxuriant vegetation; and the scene is rendered still more interesting by the remains of a stupendous aqueduct, which formerly conveyed to Lebida the water of a distant hill.

At half an hour after five, and in the neighbourhood of a miserable village, the caravan encamped for the night.

Feb. 5th. The next day’s journey, which was attended with nothing remarkable, and during which they followed the line of the coast, brought them to Zuleteen, an inconsiderable town, where they found that a boat, to which a part of their baggage was intrusted, had been compelled by a storm to deposit her cargo. From this circumstance, and the necessity which followed it, of hiring six additional camels for their goods, the departure of the caravan on the next day (February 6th) was retarded till two o’clock in the afternoon. At the end of the first hour’s march, they were informed by some friendly Arabs, who were moving their tents and cattle, for the sake of protection, to the suburbs of the town, that on the preceding afternoon a party of the rebel tribe of Hooled Bensoliman, from the neighbouring hills, had attacked a small caravan belonging to Mesurata, and after killing four of the people, had carried off the camels and baggage:—and they were also informed, that on that very morning two men, who were going from Mesurata to the market, which is held at some distance from the town, were robbed and killed by the same party. At this news a Council was summoned to determine on the prudence of attempting to proceed; for the Shereefs began to distrust the sufficiency of that title to an exemption from the violence of war, on which, when the danger was distant, they had so confidently relied. The opinion of Mr. Lucas being asked, he observed, that as the party which committed the depredations were described as not more than forty or fifty in number, and were consequently much too weak to resist the detachment that, they must be sure, would be sent from Mesurata to revenge the violences of which they had been guilty, he had not the smallest doubt of their being already returned to the refuge of their mountains; but that at any rate, their own numbers, considering how well they were armed, were amply sufficient to defend them from the attacks of such petty marauders. Pleased with an opinion which gave them the prospect of but little danger, they fresh primed their muskets and pistols, and singing as they went, drove merrily on.

At six o’clock they encamped upon a hill directly opposite to the enemy’s mountains, that were now within twelve or fifteen miles; and having lighted, by Mr. Lucas’s advice, about seventy fires, for which the dry brush-wood that was near them furnished the means, they had soon the satisfaction of observing, that the fires of the enemy, who probably mistook them for the troops of Mesurata, were all extinguished.

Feb. 7th. The next morning at day-break, in the midst of a storm from the S.W. of violent rain and wind, they left the hill; and after a tempestuous march of four hours, they discerned through the heavy atmosphere, which now began to clear, a party of fifty or sixty Arabs upon a rising ground, at a distance, to the left.—That more were concealed behind the hill, they had not the smallest doubt; but as escape was impossible, and consultation useless, they resolved unanimously to make rather than receive the attack. The Shereef Fouwad took the command, and having given the charge of the camels to the three Negros and their wives, with orders to drive them slowly, and keep them close together, led on the rest of the party. The horse, with the Shereef at their head, formed the van, while those on foot were mixed together in a croud, dancing, and shouting, and twirling their muskets over their heads, and running round each other like madmen, till they came within shot of their antagonists, when they suddenly dispersed, and each man squatted down behind a bush, to shelter himself and take a surer aim. The horse were now close upon the enemy, and were levelling their pieces at the foremost, when one of the latter laid down his musket, and called to them not to fire, for they were friends.

A moment’s pause was followed by a mutual recollection, and they exhibited, on both sides, the most extravagant marks of joy. They ran round each other like a flock of frighted sheep, and danced, and shouted, and twirled their guns over their heads, till they were tired, when they sat down and began a reciprocal congratulation on their safety. The strangers said that they were herdsmen belonging to Mesurata; that for want of pasturage near the town, they had brought their flocks to feed upon these hills; that they were 200 armed men, and that they did not fear the enemy.

After this information, and the exchange of civilities, the caravan continued its journey, and at six in the evening arrived at Mesurata.

The Governor, whose politeness and natural good sense had been improved by a long residence in Italy, received Mr. Lucas with marks of the greatest attention; but expressed his fear that, while the war continued, the Shereefs would not be able to obtain from the Rebel Arabs, who alone could furnish them, the 120 camels which were requisite for the conveyance of their goods: and that, as the prospect of peace was at present remote, and the sultry season would soon commence, he saw but little chance of their reaching Fezzan before the following Winter.

Feb. 9th. Information was now received at Mesurata, that the Bey’s army, which consisted of 1,500 horse and 6,000 foot, was encamped within five hours march of the Rebels, whose force was composed of 600 horse and 10,000 foot, and was commanded by a powerful Chief of the name of Séife Bennazar.

It was also said, that the Tribes of the friendly Arabs, who formed the principal part of the Tripoline army, were too closely connected, by intermarriages and the force of antient alliance, with many of the Rebel Clans, to bring with them to the battle that sort of zeal which Government could safely trust.

Feb. 10th. Such was the situation of affairs when the Shereef Fouwad requested from the Governor, to whom he was strongly recommended by the Minister, a public and formal declaration, that if the hostile Arabs would send to Mesurata 120 camels, with their drivers, for the conveyance of the merchandize of the Shereefs to Fezzan, both they and their cattle should be perfectly secure. The Governor replied, that by his own authority alone he could not, with either prudence or effect, announce to the Rebel Arabs such a stipulation; but that he would summon a Council of the Chiefs of the town, and would propose the business to them; though he himself was persuaded, that should they consent to the Shereef’s requisition, as he hoped they would, the Rebel Arabs were much too cautious to rely on the good faith of such an engagement.

Feb. 11th. The next morning, a Council of six of the principal inhabitants, with the Governor as President, assembled in Mr. Lucas’s tent, (for the Governor’s own house was near the sea, at the distance of six miles from Mesurata) and unanimously agreed that a letter should be written by the Governor, and signed by himself and by all the Members of the Council, to assure the hostile Arabs, that such of their camels and of their people, as they might send at the request of the Shereef, should neither be detained or molested within the jurisdiction of Mesurata. This letter, accompanied by one from the Shereef, in which he desired to be furnished with 120 camels for the carriage of his goods, was accordingly sent on that very day, by an express, to a rebel province, in which he had many friends, and which is called Gouady.

Feb. 14th. In three days from the time of his departure, the express returned, and brought with him a reply, in which the Arabs observed that, as the country was in arms, they could not with prudence trust their camels from under their own protection, much less could they spare their people.

Notwithstanding this answer, the Shereef Fouwad conceived that the refusal of the Arabs was solely dictated by a distrust of the sort of security which was offered by the Governor and Council of Mesurata; for independently of the doubts which the Arabs might entertain of their good faith, it was evident, that without the sanction of the Bey, who commanded the army, their engagement, at the utmost, could not extend beyond their own jurisdiction. But if the Bey himself would guaranty the safety of the camels and their drivers, by granting them a pass, the Shereef concluded that the real objections of the Arabs would be entirely removed. With this view, on the 27th of February, the Shereef and two of his countrymen set out for the camp, which they reached on the second day, as it was not far from Mesurata; but their trouble was fruitless, for the Bey could not be prevailed on to assent to their proposal.

All hopes of obtaining, before the conclusion of the war, a sufficient conveyance for the goods being thus at an end, the Council resolved that, until peace should be established, the Shereefs and the other Merchants of the caravan should be at liberty to warehouse their packages in the public store-rooms of the Governor.

Deprived, in this manner, of all prospect of arriving this year at Fezzan, and doubtful if the state of the country would encourage, or his own situation permit the attempt in the Winter, Mr. Lucas resolved to avail himself to the utmost of such means of information as the knowledge of his fellow-travellers enabled them to afford.

He had already discovered that the little old Shereef Imhammed had been often employed by the King of Fezzan as his Factor in the Slave Trade; and in that capacity had travelled to Bornou and different parts of Nigritia; and he now determined to cultivate his friendship with double solicitude, and by occasional presents and frequent conversation, to draw from him an account of the countries which he had seen. With this view he, one evening, took from his pocket his map of Africa, and after satisfying the Shereef’s curiosity as to its nature and use, told him that he once intended it as a present to the King of Fezzan; but, that having discovered in it several mistakes, he now proposed to draw another that should be more correct. The Shereef replied, that the King would be highly gratified with such a present. Mr. Lucas said, that if he would assist him with an account of the distances from place to place, in such parts of the country as he had visited, and with their names in Arabic, and would also satisfy him as to such questions as he should ask, he would prepare two corrected copies of the map, and would give one of them to the King and the other to himself. The Shereef was delighted with the proposal; and they immediately retired to a sand hill at some distance from the tent, that their conversation might be unreserved and uninterrupted. Many successive days were employed in the same manner; and as Mr. Lucas wrote down, at the time, the information which he obtained, he was soon possessed of such an account of Fezzan, Bornou, and Nigritia, especially of the two former, as much diminished the chagrin of his own disappointment.

One afternoon, as they sat together on the customary hill, they were suddenly disturbed by the loud screams and dismal howlings of all the women of Mesurata—a mode of alarming and collecting the men, which is always practised among the Arabs, on the approach of thieves, or of an invading enemy.

In a few minutes the townsmen were under arms, and together with the Shereef Fouwad, the other Fezzaners, and Mr. Lucas’s Black, went hastily on to the place where the Rebels were said to have appeared:—there they found that the women had been deceived. It seems an ass had strayed into a field of barley; and as the owner of the corn, who was armed, and happened to pass by at the time, went into the field to drive out the animal, the women mistook him for one of the Rebels, and conceiving that many more were concealed, (for they often come down from the mountains to steal the cattle) had given the usual alarm.

In a few minutes, Mr. Lucas and the old Shereef, who had both continued on the hill, observed the Fezzaners coming sulkily back, and cursing the women for so foolish a disturbance, whilst the townsmen, on the contrary, fired their pieces, and rejoiced in their disappointment as much as if they had conquered an army.

A few days afterwards, a second alarm was given, and with much more reason than the first; for a party of the Rebel Arabs, some on horseback, and others on foot, had suddenly appeared within two miles of the town, and after killing two herdsmen, and seizing three Black slaves, their assistants, had carried off sixty goats, fourteen cows, and three camels.

The attack was made at a time when most of the townsmen were at the market, which is held at the distance of three miles from Mesurata; and to add to their indignation, it was made in a place which hitherto had been deemed inviolable; for the land on which the cattle were feeding was considered as under the immediate protection of a departed Saint, whose remains were buried there, and whose sanctuary, it was thought, no Musselman, however accustomed to robbery and blood, could venture to profane.

March 13th. Letters by express from the camp were now received by the Governor, which announced, that in consequence of the Bey’s having entered the country of the Rebels, and turned his cattle to pasture in their corn, an engagement, which soon became general, had ensued; that after a loss of 150 men, the Rebels had retired to the mountains; and that the Bey, at the expence in killed and wounded, of not more than twenty-six horse and seventy or eighty foot, had obtained possession of ten or twelve thousand sheep, and of three hundred camels.

Mr. Lucas congratulated the Governor on the victory, who thanked him; but “I fear,” said he, shaking his head, “that the news requires confirmation. There was a time, indeed, when the people of Tripoli knew how to conquer, and the Arabs trembled at the sight of an encampment.”

March 15th. On the next day but one, accounts were brought by different persons who arrived from the camp, that there had indeed been a skirmish, in their relation of which they varied much from each other; but they all agreed that the Bey had lost a greater number of men, and that the only cattle which he had obtained, were a few camels and some sheep that the straggling parties from the camp had seized.

Wearied with fruitless expectations of a peace, disappointed in their expedients, and warned by the increasing heat, that the season for a journey to Fezzan was already past, the Shereefs now resolved to proceed to the intended places of their Summer residence.

The Shereef Fouwad retired to Wadan, his native town; and the Shereef Imhammed, with tears in his eyes, and an earnest prayer that he might see his friend Mr. Lucas again in November, retired to the mountains, where he had many acquaintance, and could live at a small expence.

March 20th. A few days afterwards, Mr. Lucas took leave of the Governor, to whose civilities he had been much indebted, and having accompanied a small caravan as far as Lebida, embarked in a coasting vessel at the neighbouring village of Legatah, and went by sea to Tripoli, where the Bashaw, upon whom he waited, and to whom with many acknowledgments he returned the mule, not only received him with great kindness, but expressed his hope that better fortune would attend him another year.

April 6th. From Tripoli he sailed for Malta, and after a tedious quarantine, which the suspicion of the plague at Mesurata had much prolonged, he took his departure for Marseilles, and on the 26th of July arrived in England.