It seemed an act of oppression, on first thoughts, thus to oblige a small village to furnish nearly 200 persons and their animals with food and lodging, for one or more nights; yet, in reality, it was less so than it appeared to be. The reason is this. Every village shaykh has remitted to him so much of the imposts falling on it, in consideration of the number of persons who may be likely to be guests, from government orders, or otherwise, during the year; and, in consideration of this, he is bound to receive and entertain them for the space of three days. In this way, that noble institution of the menzel or alighting-house is maintained throughout Syria, (where I have often profited by it,) and elsewhere in Turkey, as I have been informed: in consequence of which a traveller, who is a stranger, rides boldly up to the house of the shaykh, and, in nine cases out of ten, is entertained for the night, and sent off next morning with a prayer for his safety, without the cost of a farthing.
The next day we reached Jaffa in three hours. One hour from El Mharrem is the river Awgy. The news of our approach had reached Jaffa already, and curiosity was awake, as I could perceive, among the inhabitants. The town-gate was thronged with spectators. This gate, if I recollect rightly, the only one, was handsome, and highly ornamented with a diversity of colours fantastically painted in arabesque. The governor had a small kiosk, or pavilion, near it: and, seeing me pass from his window, requested my presence the moment of my arrival. He received me with a very distant air, recalling to mind, in all probability, the refusal of his present, which refusal he recollected to have occurred through me in Mr. B.’s name, three years before.
When I told him I wished immediately to have quarters assigned for us, he gave me one of his archers, with a command to turn out any family at my pleasure. Knowing, however, the delay and distress that always attended these measures of force, I preferred going to the Latin monastery, but found it too small for all of us. The Greek monastery (where I had lodged before) was more spacious, and I here took six rooms opening on the terrace that overlooks the port. The English consul’s house had been previously prepared for Lady Hester, and was at once airy and agreeable. She arrived in due time (on her gray mare), and rode strait to Signor Damiani’s, who received her in the same gold-laced cocked hat which afterwards so much excited the ridicule of her royal highness the Princess of Wales and of Signor Bergami.
Jaffa was at this season very dull, as the pilgrims had already passed to Jerusalem. Their influx and return from that place, I have already said, are the chief support of the inhabitants; for the trade is little without them.
Much bustle occurred a day or two afterwards, in consequence of the arrival of a courier from Egypt on his way to Constantinople, to announce the defeat of the Wahabys and the imprisonment of Abu Nukta, their chief. It was reported that there was among these Wahabys a valiant maiden, named Gâly, who performed prodigies of valour.
Mohammed Aga, the governor, was ordered by the firman of the pasha to accompany Lady Hester to Ascalon; a mission he would willingly have avoided, as it cannot be supposed he liked her ladyship, who had before treated him with such contempt: nor did she now pursue more conciliatory measures; for never was she known to bend to any man, neither had Mohammed aught in him to secure her esteem.
He was astute, false, and insinuating. Bought, as a Mameluke, by the tyrant Gezzàr, he had, like those who had survived of that number, been elevated to considerable situations, in which the present pasha had continued him; but, like them, without relations or domestic connections to chain him to the soil, he lived but to enrich himself. Hence he was often guilty of rapine and oppression; and the energy of his administration, for which he was sometimes praised, was nevertheless founded in cruelty. The thief was punished with the loss of the offending hand, the libertine with the severest castigations; yet he was not disposed to set bounds to the indulgence of his own depraved tastes and propensities. He was married, nevertheless, to the daughter of that Kengi Ahmed, whom formerly we saw as governor of Jerusalem, which post he still filled. With all this, Mohammed Aga was reputed a warlike chieftain, and was thought by some as likely to succeed the present pasha.
Signor Damiani, the English vice-consul, had a budget full of anecdotes tending to prove how perfidious and how base the governor was. I noted down two; one as serving to show how much the simplicity of the Mahometan worship had been perverted; such perversions being common in the course of time to all institutions. He happened to be greatly taken with a handsome horse belonging to a chorister in one of the mosques. The chorister liked his horse, and would not sell it, which refusal Mohammed Aga pretended not to resent, and seemed to have forgotten the matter. On the first day of Ramazán, the new moon was not visible, upon which the chorister deferred the commencement of his fast until the morrow. Mohammed Aga wanted nothing more than a pretext to ruin him, and this seemed a good one. He sent for the singer, reproached him loudly for his relaxed principles and his breach of public and divine ordinances, inasmuch as the new moon had been seen by several persons on the prescribed day; fined him in a large sum of money; and confiscated his goods and possessions, among which, of course, was the horse.
On another occasion, a man offended him grievously. He pretended to have forgiven him; and a few days afterwards, as the offending Turk was sitting under a tree, a servant of the governor’s drew his pistol and shot him. The servant made a pretence of hiding himself for three or four days, and then resumed his situation in his master’s family as if nothing had happened.
We remained at Jaffa until the 30th of the month; and, on the last day of March, set off for Ascalon, our party being now increased by the addition of Mohammed Aga, Abu Nabût, and suite, and by Signor Damiani, together with a host of cooks, and loads of shovels, pickaxes, baskets, and whatever was necessary for excavating the soil. The country from Jaffa assumed a rural appearance, resembling the cultivated parts of England; the undulating soil, covered with wheat in leaf, barley in ear, and high grass, gave proofs of its fertility. No part of Syria is so beautiful; which manifests how erroneous is the argument of Gibbon, who founds on the supposed barrenness of Palestine, compared with its former population, a doubt of the authenticity of the bible.