The reader will think me describing the palace of a prince; but it was the residence of a private gentleman—a merchant, I believe; and I have been so minute, because it is not a palace, but one of the edifices common among that class of persons. We saw more of them; they are all wretched looking on the outside, but magnificent and luxurious within.
These two chambers form the “parlors” of the dwelling. At an angle corresponding to that of the small chamber was a room of a plainer character, used during our residence in the house as a dining-room. The remainder of the two sides of the court was occupied by the sitting room of the females of the family, and by entrances to the kitchen and to the offices. Against the end of the court which faced the large recess, two flights of broad steps ascended to the right and left, one to the gentlemen’s, and the other to the ladies’ private apartments. They were protected from the weather by a broad ornamented projection of the roof. On entering our own sleeping apartment, we had before us a passage about six feet wide, on the left of which was a platform of small elevation divided by a projecting partition into two recesses; while on the right was a similar recess, each of them being about twenty feet square; along the sides were ottomans raised about six inches from the floor, and these being at night provided with covering, formed our beds. The sides of this room were also ornamented with arabesques, and with a great variety of Arabic poetry.
Damascus is by far the most oriental city that I have seen, and this may serve as a specimen of the dwellings of the wealthier class.
The ladies of Mr. Farrah’s family came forward to welcome those of our party; we were led to our various rooms and told that they were ours; and then the family retired; nor through the whole of our stay, though their hospitality was unremitting, was there any parade or ostentation of service. Our wants were all supplied, and where this was possible, anticipated; abundant tables were spread, some gentlemen of the family generally taking their seats at them, but seldom eating, giving quiet attention to our wants, and as quiet orders to the servants; but no one pressed us to eat or to drink, or spoke of the dishes, or obtruded any thing on our notice; nor did they come themselves except when we expressed a wish for their society. The business of the family seemed to go on in the usual course, and the only evidence we had that our presence was felt, was in the unostentatious supply of our necessities. This was true hospitality; we received the most essential services, but without their even seeming to imagine that they were conferring an obligation, or making us feel uneasy by allowing us to see that we were disturbing them.
The Moslem inhabitants of Damascus are like those of Turkey further north both in their dress and habits, except that the turban is better adjusted, and has a smarter and more dandyish look. So at least we thought; but perhaps we should not have noticed this, if we had not been led to expect it from a passage in some book, I believe Hope’s Anastasius. And the ladies of the city, I suppose, would scarcely pardon a traveller who should neglect to notice the cobcob, any more than an American belle would excuse an eastern traveller who, in speaking of her costume, would forget to describe the elegant bishops’ sleeves by which she adds to her arms those beautiful proportions which stupid nature has forgotten to give her. The cobcob is a kind of—what shall I call it?—stilt? no; this will not describe it—nor will shoe, nor yet patten. It is a combination of the excellences of the stilt and patten. The manufacturer takes a slip of board, which he cuts to the shape of the foot; and across this nails an embroidered strap, through which the foot is to be slipped, and by which it adheres; next he fits to this board near the ends, two upright pieces about nine inches in height, narrowed above to the width of the delicate foot, but spread out to a breadth of eight inches at the lower extremity. The whole is now ornamented with mother-of-pearl in fanciful patterns, and the cobcob is finished and ready for use. The height that I have given for them is that of a pair designed for a person of the wealthier classes; the height, however, is in proportion to the rank of the wearer; and if the lady be of superior grade in society, she disdains to walk with a cobcob of less than twelve inches in height; while the vulgar have to be contented with a smaller elevation, say of five or six inches. Slipping her feet under the strap, the Damascus belle now rises into the proper dignity of her station, and is ready to receive her visitors. Would it not be well for our ladies to adopt the cobcobs as an excellent accompaniment to the bishops’ sleeves? In some of our towns they would be of real service, as they would settle questions of rank and precedency, by showing us at once in which class of society the lady considers herself to rank; whether among the first, second, or third, or only the ninth or tenth. For an American exclusive, we would allow a suitable cobcob of three feet in height.
Joking aside, it was really odd enough to see the ladies of Damascus going about their houses with this singular kind of slipper. I have described exactly the dimensions of a pair which I purchased in a street almost entirely devoted to the sale of them, and abounding in them of all sizes, from the proportions here given, down to those for a child, where the altitude is not more than a few inches. I saw none worn in the streets: they use them in the marble courts of their houses, in the kitchen and nursery, and in the common household occupations.
The morning after our arrival, Mrs. Farran, the lady of the English consul-general for Syria, did us the honor to call, and was good enough to offer to accompany us in our visits through the city. Mr. Farran sent a very kind message, but was unable to come himself; they were residing at a country-seat at the foot of the mountains, and Mr. F. having the day previous to this come to the city on business, was attacked with a fever. Damascus, in summer, is a very unhealthy place, and is dangerous to European constitutions. For the polite attentions of Mr. and Mrs. F., which were unceasing during our stay, any thing that I could say would be but a feeble acknowledgment. We had no claims on them, not even a letter of introduction; but their politeness was unremitting, and certainly contributed greatly to the pleasures of our visit. Mr. Farran, I believe, was appointed to this station by his government in consequence of its wish to open a steamboat communication down the Euphrates with India, and by his intelligence and tact, and the high esteem in which he is held by the Pasha of Egypt, has very materially contributed to the success of that enterprise. Mrs. Farran was the first lady that had ever ventured to appear here in the European costume, and the ladies of our party were the next; lady Franklin, who had visited the place, having, during her visit, adopted the national dress.
Having mounted our ponies, we started, under the guidance of our polite friend, to visit the curiosities of Damascus; and first proceeded to the palace of Abdallah Bey, one of the wealthiest persons of the city. His family is considered the most ancient and most noble in Syria, and, we were informed, had the Pashalik of Damascus for 300 years. Abdallah has declined office under the Egyptian Pasha,[76] and is now a private citizen. His palace, with the courts and gardens, occupies a large extent of ground; but I will not fatigue the reader with details. There are three or four distinct courts, like that of our own residence already described, but of course much larger, and in a style of far greater magnificence. In this palace we counted eight fountains, several of them with jets. The Bey received us with great politeness, and showed us through the buildings himself, after which we were entertained with coffee, and pipes and sherbet. A hint being here given by Mrs. F. that the strangers would be pleased if they could see the ladies’ apartments, the old gentleman gave orders immediately to have them cleared of his women-folks; and when this had been done, led us through the whole establishment. As we proceeded; a rustling and occasionally a titter behind the partitions or screens, seemed to indicate that the females were not far off, and were amusing themselves with watching us while they themselves were unseen. This part of the palace is separated from the rest by a high wall, and consists of a court, with two large fountains surrounded by orange and lemon trees and rose bushes, a garden ornamented also with two fountains and trees, and a range of apartments surrounding the court. These apartments were more splendid than any others in the palace, the architectural finishing of the chambers being of the most delicate kind and in exquisite taste. One room, as we entered, presented a marble fountain in the centre, in which were seven jets; and looking through the shower of diamonds that broke from them, and fell with an unceasing murmur into the reservoir, we saw, at the further end of the chamber, a cascade of six or seven feet in height, the water of which was broken up, and fell amid sculptured marble cut into a variety of fanciful forms.
In the gentleman’s receiving rooms of the Damascus palaces is a curious ornament. A few feet below the ceiling is a broad cornice, supported by Saracenic sculptures running quite around the room; and ranged on this is an unbroken line of China bowls of the largest dimensions that it is possible to procure. The wealth of the individual is supposed to be indicated by the number and the size of these bowls. In one palace I counted near two hundred in a single room; they are of the finest China, and are colored; and in rooms where, as in these countries, the only furniture consists of carpets and ottomans, may assist in preventing the apartment from looking too naked; but I did not much admire the taste. Almost every family has some of these bowls; there were several in our sleeping room at Mr. Farrah’s, which we put to the desecrating use of wash-bowls.
From this we proceeded to the palaces of Ali Aga and Abdi El Belzah Aga, which were also splendid, though smaller than that of Abdallah Bey. In one of them was a chamber not more than fourteen feet square, the finishing of the walls and ceiling of which had cost 7000 dollars. They were composed of mirrors in small compartments, and were further highly enriched with mother of pearl, gilding, and with arabesques and Saracenic mouldings in a great variety of forms.