How often, as we traversed the country, with timber, limestone, and all the facilities for colonizing, did I not regret the obstacles arising from religion and prejudices, which must ever prevent the amalgamation of Western and Eastern nations!—that our superabundant population should be compelled to go in search of settlements to distant islands and continents, instead of recovering from their neglected state these once flourishing regions! Asia Minor is the field for emigrant labour; a country where the bounties of Nature are so happily distributed, in a climate so genial and so favourable to pleasurable life. Look at the bays, the gulfs, the havens, the harbours, that gird its shore; examine its mineral productions, its forests, its mountains, valleys, plains, and rivers: and description would fail in the imperfect attempt to paint such a noble region.
Baynder is twelve hours from Smyrna.
I did not forget, on awaking in the morning, to inquire, by means of Etienne, after the Christian’s horse, and I found that Mustafa had, according to my orders, consigned him over-night to the keeper of the caravansera which had been indicated by his owner.
I now turned my thoughts to the business on which I was come. Dressing myself in my still damp clothes, I inquired for the English consul’s house, and was shown up into a very handsome breakfast-room, quite in the English style, where a lady was preparing breakfast for two gentlemen, one of whom was Mr. Werry, the consul, the other Captain Beaufort.[16] My shabby clothes and somewhat equivocal appearance procured me no great civility from any of them, until I presented my letters to Mr. Werry, who, immediately on reading them, invited me to breakfast, condoled with me on the misfortunes we had suffered, and offered me every assistance in his power. Under his guidance, I employed my time in buying all sorts of articles, so that the merchants and shopkeepers could not imagine who I was, or why I could be laying in such a stock of goods.
I was one morning visited by a man in Turkish clothes, who addressed me in English. He told me he was a Welchman, and had come with a secretary to the English embassy, in the quality of servant, to Constantinople, where he had been induced to turn Mussulman. He said that he was poor and miserable, and was desirous, through my assistance, of escaping on board the Frederickstein, a British frigate, lying in the harbour, in order to quit the country. I professed my inclination to aid him, and addressed myself to Mr. Barthold, a gentleman connected with the consulship, to whom I told the story, and engaged him in the man’s interests. The means of his escape were all contrived; and, under the pretence of buying himself some necessaries, he obtained from us a few shillings, and left us under promise to come to the waterside at the time we appointed: but he never came, and, apparently, his object was no other than to get a little money from us.
Mustafa paid me regular visits every morning, being on board-wages of sixty paras a day. When the time drew near for our departure, Etienne told me many stories of the plots that Mustafa had laid in conjunction with a gang of thieves to rob and assassinate us on our return, and prayed me on no account to go back by land; I resolved to profit by his advice, but pretended not to take it. Foreseeing that my only chance of thwarting Mustafa, if he really were so disposed, was to mislead him, I desired Etienne to agree with the postmaster for what horses would carry the luggage, and continued my preparations as if going by land until the 17th of January, when, having everything in readiness, I found out a captain of a Greek saccolava or sloop, bound for Egypt, took him, for greater security, to Mr. Werry’s, and having agreed, in the presence of the consul, for my passage and my private accommodation in the small cabin, at the price of one hundred piasters, I, to the great astonishment of Mustafa, embarked the effects and ourselves the same day, and by evening we were on our passage to Rhodes.
We anchored that night under Yenghy Kalés, the castle that defends the entrance of Smyrna Bay. I had now time to examine my fellow-passengers, of whom there was a great number, but the only one with whom I could converse was a Catholic priest, who had studied at Rome, and spoke good Italian. Mustafa, disliking his berth in the hold, had made a bold attempt to obtrude himself into my little cabin, which I absolutely opposed, as the medicine-chest, containing four or five hundred pounds in money, was there.
At noon the next day we weighed anchor, and, at sunset, reached a chiflik, or village, nearly opposite to Karabornu, where we cast anchor for the night. In the morning we proceeded for Scio, which we reached two hours after sunset, passing, in our way, the island of Eleusis. The wind and weather had been variable all day, and we had scarcely anchored in the harbour of Scio when a tremendous storm of wind, thunder, and rain, came on, and lasted all night: so we remained here, weatherbound, for three days.
On the 24th, a strong north wind having set in, we quitted Scio, and on the following morning found ourselves in sight of Stancho, which we were abreast of at sunset.
In the morning of the 26th, we weighed before daylight. Our course, owing to the nature of the coast, was very winding, and the wind that carried us from our anchorage would serve us no farther than to a port on the main land, called by the sailors Cavo Crio, which we entered.