The Master of Horse, who came to receive us, informed us that the whole collection amounts to eight hundred, among which are many of pure Arabian blood; but that the best were either out at pasture, or with the Pasha’s army in Syria. At our visit there were about four hundred animals of various breeds in the stables; and on entering we were presented with a spectacle of ferocity bordering on the terribly sublime. Whether it is a matter of instinct or education I cannot say, but they no sooner caught sight of our foreign dress, and heard our language, than each animal seemed changed into a fury; their eyes flashed, their manes seemed to rise, they kicked, and writhed, and tried every means to break loose; snorting, and showing in every part of their distorted features the most savage rage. Their keepers went among them, and succeeded in establishing a little more quiet; but it was really curious to see the malice which they seemed to bear towards us to the last.
Among them were eight full blooded Arabs of a superior breed; and I suppose I shall suffer in the opinion of all amateurs of horses, when I say that I was disappointed in them. Their limbs are well formed for activity, but their necks appeared to me too short and heavy for the highest kind of beauty; but I will add that I am no great judge of such matters, and ought to offer an opinion with diffidence. We saw here the horse that had carried Ibrahim in all his wars with the Wahabees; it is a gray, and is a handsome animal; but is now thirty years old, and, though well fed and kindly treated, is never used. There were one or two others in the collection similarly situated; one I noticed, so old as to be scarcely able to stand, and the picture of decrepitude. Some horses from Dongola, in Upper Egypt, were striking animals; they were large and very powerful, with glossy coats of pure jet black. The Arabians were of various colors: white, bay, and brown. Among them were numerous colts and some mules; we saw also a donkey, of a white color, for which the Pasha had been offered $600. It was the largest animal of this description that I have ever seen. A mule by an Arab mare was also a beautiful object, it had legs like those of an antelope, and an eye of fire. They informed us that two strong men were required to manage it.
July 23d. Most of this day was spent in lounging among the bazaars. Some of these are wide, and the roof or covering being elevated to a height of forty or fifty feet, they are not only airy, but the effect on the eye is good; but most of them are not at all remarkable, while the generality of the streets in Cairo are, I think, narrower than usual, even in Turkish cities. Provisions are abundant in them, and very cheap. Passing one day along the bazaars, we turned into a court adjoining them to take a look at the depository and market for slaves. The court is not large, but is surrounded with houses of irregular shape, swarming with slaves, tier back of tier, as far as our eyes could reach. They were all of a jet black, with smooth glossy skins; and the hair of the females was worked up by a greasy substance into long ringlets, which fell on either side of the head. Their cheeks were in some instances marked by scars in regular figures, evidently designed to be an addition to their charms. As we passed among them, they put on their best looks, and by smiles and gestures invited us to become their purchasers; to which, I believe, we felt not the least inclined, though their price was extremely low.
Taking a Cavass on another occasion, I went off to visit the madhouse, of which I had heard some singular accounts. After threading a great labyrinth of streets, he told me that we were approaching it, and that it would be necessary for him to take them some provisions as a kind of admittance fee. So I furnished him with money, and he filled his arms with the cakes, somewhat like a thick pancake, which are the common food of the lower classes in Cairo. On this introduction the keeper admitted us, and I found myself in an open square or court, surrounded by a stone edifice in which were the cells of the maniacs. It was a sight not only mortifying to the pride of man, but adapted to harrow up all his feelings of sympathy. The cells were not more than seven or eight feet square, with uneven floors of stone or earth, and were grated on the side towards the court. Their inmates were sometimes fastened with chains, but sometimes at liberty to make the most of the narrow precincts of their cells. They were quite in a state of nature, filthy, and often covered with sores; and seemed, poor creatures, to be badly fed. On seeing the cakes, their countenances brightened; they stretched out their emaciated arms between the iron bars, and on being supplied, began to devour rather than eat, till in a short time our supply was exhausted. I turned, saddened and sickened, from the sight.
A short time before our visit, a butcher was brought and shut up here in a state of complete and dangerous madness. After some time he grew more gentle, and by and by was sometimes permitted by the keeper to leave his cell and to go at large through the court. One morning the latter, on returning to his duty, was met at the gate by this man, with an expression of joy on his face, and invited to come in and make a purchase of his meat, which he said he could highly recommend. The keeper, on entering, found, to his surprise, in one corner of the court a rude imitation of shambles, well furnished with meat cut up in a variety of forms. He gazed with astonishment, and a horrible idea now suddenly crossing his mind, he began a hasty examination of the cells. He was right. The half-starved wretch had murdered one of the other maniacs, and dragged the body piecemeal through the bars; and it was the dismembered carcass of his comrade that was suspended on the shambles.
CHAPTER VI.
Preparations to visit the Pyramids. Audience of leave with the Governor of Cairo. Visit of the ladies of our party to the Sultana. Description of the Harem.
The 24th was a day of bustle, a large portion of it being spent at home, superintending the storing of wines and fruits, the cooking of fowls and eggs, and the preparation of all the et ceteras that would be required by a few days’ residence on the desert.