1

a more manly mind; a more firm and determined integrity. Affure yourselves, that the names of two fuch men will bear a great load of prejudice in the other fcale, before they can be entirely outweighed.

With this mover, and this feconder, agreed the whole Houfe of commons; the whole houfe of lords; the whole bench of bishops; the king; the miniftry; the oppofition; all the diftinguished clergy of the establishment; all the eminent lights (for they were confulted) of the Diffenting churches. This according voice of national wifdom ought to be liftened to with reverence. To fay that all thefe defcriptions of Englishmen unanimoufly concurred in a fcheme for introducing the Catholic religion, or that none of them understood the nature and effects of what they were doing, fo well as a few obfcure clubs of people, whofe names you never heard of, is fhamelessly abfurd. Surely it is paying a miferable compliment to the religion we profefs, to fuggeft, that every thing eminent in the kingdom is · indifferent, or even adverse to that religion, and that its fecurity is wholly abandoned to the zeal of thofe, who have nothing but their zeal to diftinguifh them. In weighing this unanimous concurrence of whatever the nation has to boast of, I hope you will recollect, that all these concurring parties do by no means love one another enough to agree in any point, which was not both evidently, and importantly, right.

Adventures of Eyles Irwin, Efq; in a Voyage up the Red-Sea, and in a Journey through the Deferts of Thebais. From his Letters, 4to.

N the year 1777, Mr. Irwin, a

Company's fervice, was fent from Madrafs with difpatches for England. He embarked on board the fnow Adventure, Captain Bacon, in company with three other gentlemen, Major Alexander, Mr. Hammond, and Lieutenant * *

a

gentleman whofe name is kindly fuppreffed, for a reafon that will appear in due time; bound for Mocha on the coaft of Arabia Felix with a refolution, either to reach Suez by a voyage up the Red-Sea, or to proceed by land to the port of Alexandria, and thence to take fhipping for Europe. In eight weeks, owing to the lateness of the feafon, they effected a paffage to Mocha. Here the Eafi-India Company have a refident, and Mr. Irwin and his party ftaid till the fhip had laid in ftores for the voyage up the Red-Sea. Of the cuftoms of the country he gives the following account:

The women in Arabia are kept in much stricter confinement, than thofe of their religion in India. The females of rank are shut up in their apartments, and never stir abroad, except now and then, to accompany their hufbands on an excurfion to the vallies. They are veiled at these times from head to foot, and fent off upon horfe-back under cover of the night. But this fimple recreation does not fall often to their lot. The civilized Arabs are of all nations the least inclined

to action; and it is to be fuppofed, that women born here live and die, without firring out of the walls of Mocha; fuch is the tax that is laid on birth and greatness, even in the remote country of Arabia.

To thofe of a lower degree, there is fome deviation permitted from the feverity of this custom. Though there are no public Hummums for the women to refort to as in Turky, they are indulged with the freedom of vifiting their neighbours, when the dusk of the evening can kreen their perfons from obfervation for the thick veils in which their faces are buried utterly preclude the poffibility of diftinguish ing their features. We have met them ourselves in the streets, and have conceived a favourable idea of their faces, from the fymmetry of their figures.

Incontinence is held much more criminal among the fingle than married females. Though adultery is punished with a heavy fine, the feduction of a virgin is attended by a more ferious correction. In this they differ from the laws of more enlightened kingdoms, where an injury of this nature is not only unpunishable by any courfe of law, but the matter itfelf is treated in a very light man.

'ner.

This

We were furprized at the number of Chriftian renegadoes that refide at Mocha. Not, that the apoftacy of men, who perhaps had no fenfe of religion until they profeffed Mahometanifm, could provoke our wonder; but how their worldly interefts could be advanced by the change. Reduced to a pitiful fubfiftence, and held in defrved contempt by the natives, we should have furmifed their de fection to be merely the effects of defpair; and that the fugitives from juftice alone fought their fafety at this price, had not the example of a Greek priest tomewhat fhaken our opinion. priest, by name Ananias, I remember to have heard mentioned in Bengal, as a miracle of piety. And yet in the feventieth year of his age did he publicly abjure the Chriftian religion, in the courfe of a pilgrimage to Mount Sinai. He was circumcifed, and received into the Mahometan church and, to crown the whole of this ftrange proceeding, was led about the city for three days, according to cuf tom, mounted on an afs, to receive the alms of the faithful, which every convert is entitled to on his admiffion to their mysteries. This happened during our fhort flay at Mocha; and is one of the greatest inftances of the infirmity of human nature, which has come within the fphere of my observation.

Having taken in proper provifions, they re-imbarked on a voyage up the Red Sea to Suez, which is but a short journey from Grand Cairo. The paffage up the RedSea, little known to Europeans, is rendered extremely dangerous by rocks and fhoals, and, the

wind

.

wind being against them, they could not run more than thirty miles upon one tack: their method was to make one fhore about fun-fet, then to tack and ftand over for the opposite fhore until day-break.

When the veffel had beat up in that manner for fome time, they fuddenly found themfelves about fun-fet on a hazy evening driven by the current among a line of rocks and fhoals on the Arabian coaft, and in imminent danger of deftruction. The fnow Aurora had been loft in the fame place, about fix months before. After an anxious perilous night, and various intricate traverfes, they took refuge in the harbour of Yambo, that appeared in fight in the morning. Here they congratulated themfelves with a conclufion of their troubles, having heard of the hofpitality of the place, from the crew of the above fhip-wrecked veffel, who had owed their fafety to the inhabitants. This port was in the neighbourhood of Medina; and as the Adventure had landed a confiderable fum of money at Mocha, being a prefent from the Nabob of the Carnatic to the temple of Mecca, they doubted not of receiving the most favourable treatment at Yambo.

Nevertheless, after the gentlemen with the captain had been decoyed afhore by the moft plaufible invitation from the vizier of the town; and being amufed in their negociations for a pilot to condu&t the fhip to Suez; they were at length refused all affiftance by the vizier, under pretence of waiting for an order from the Xerif of

Mecca, and in the mean time a guard was placed over them, and they were kept in ftrict confinement. In the evening, the vizier fent to the captain to defire he would order the ship into the harbour. They now began to fufpect that fome black defign was in agitation, and their first refolution was to attempt to gain their boat by force, and return on board. But whilft they were confulting on this point, their boat's crew was fent to the fame place of confinement, and the boat itself removed to fome fecret place-fresh injunctions alfo were fent to the captain to order the fhip into harbour. As they had no doubts but that this was done with a defign to get the veffel into their power, and thereby prevent the difcovery of their villainy: they refolved, as the only chance of faving their lives, to fend pofitive orders to the mate to weigh or flip his anchor with the first favourable wind, make the best of his way to Judda, and acquaint the English fhips there with their fituation. This was accordingly done-a faithful Arabian who had been their interpreter, and had attached himself to them, carried the letter to the vizier-his ignorance of our language favoured their defign, and the interpreter paffed it off for an order to come immediately into harbour. For two days, the wind being unfavourable, they were in the most dreadful fufpence. length they faw the ship getting under way; but the weather fuddenly changing, fhe ran amongst the breakers: the Arabians attacked her from the fhore, and the people on board were afraid of

At

defend

defending themselves, as the confequence of killing an Arabian, would have been the certain death of the party on shore. They foon after got poffeffion of the fhip, and took out all the guns and fmall

arms.

During the three days they had now been here, many trading boats having failed in and out of the harbour, the vizier was deprived of all hopes of making a fecret prize of the vefiel. He there fore entered into a kind of treaty with the prifoners, and after extorting confiderable fums of money from them, and detaining them a month, by which time, the northern monfoons fet in, he agreed to fend them away to Suez in a boat, for which, they were to pay the extravagant price of 60 dollars. However, they had nothing left but to fubmit, and the company, confifting of Mr. Irwin, Major Alexander, Lieutenant *** tended by four fervants and Ibrahim, the Arabian interpreter, embarked on board their boat. This boat, which from the price they paid for her, they named the Impofition, afforded thefe four gentlemen no more accommodation than a fquare of about five feet diameter, being formed of their chetts, with no defence against the mid-day fun or mid-night dews. Their fervants and the boat's crew fufficiently occupied the reft.

at

At the commencement of this voyage, the lieutenant before-mentioned difcovered by many extravagances, that the treatment they had received at Yambo had difor. dered his intellects. He had betrayed fears for his life from his firft entrance into the boat, and retarded their departure by efcap

ing afhore, where he went back to the vizier to communicate his apprehenfions. He was brought on board again, where every thing was done to quiet his mind, and divert kim; but with fo little fuccefs, that the Arabs were in turn alarmed at his mad freaks, and pofitively refused to proceed on their voyage, if he remained on board. In this dilemma they were forced to fend the poor man back to Yambo, with a recommendation to the care of Captain Bacon of the Adventure; and had afterward the fatisfaction to hear of his

recovery.

After a tedious coafting voyage up the Arabian fhore for a month, the boatmen, when they arrived at the gulph of Suez, ftood over to the Egyptian fhore under the advantage of the night, and made for the port of Cofire, which is about half-way between Yambo and Suez. The gentlemen now found that the boat was originally bound only for Cofire, and that the vizier of Yambo, by making an exorbitant charge for a voyage to Suez, had doubly cheated them; befide expofing them to a much longer and more dangerous journey by land, than if they had been conveyed to the port for which they had paid their paffage.

Cofire, which ftands in 26 deg. 20 min. north latitude, is defcribed as the fouthernmost port on the coast of Egypt, and to have been of great note, and to be ftill confiderable, for the exportation of grain to Arabia, which is brought in caravans from the Nile. The town is however in a miferable ftate of decay, and the afpect of the country round is dreary; the eye cannot catch a

verdant

verdant spot, and this defert is the barrier to the celebrated and fertile land of Upper Egypt.

There was now no remedy, but to land at the place to which they were carried; and to wait the fetting out of a caravan with which they might travel to the Nile. The novelty of their European drefs procured them many vifitors; to leffen therefore the notice they attracted, they refolved to affume the vestments of the Easterns; and as being also better adapted to the nature of the climate. Their ftay in this place was at a continual expence of prefents of one kind or other, which their new acquaintances contrived to get from them by infinuations and importunities; having conceived high ideas of their wealth by their baggage. The delay of the arrival of the expected caravan, by the return of which they were to proceed to the Nile, proved a good opening to the Arabian Shaik to profit by their eagerness to depart. He offered to procure them as many camels as they required for them and their baggage; for which, however, they were to pay double price of camel hire to Ghinnah, on account of the fcarcity of those animals at that time. To this mea. fure they would have agreed, had not the price he demanded exceeded trebly what it ought to have done according to his own calculation. The news of the approach of the caravan put an end to the negociation, but afforded him opportunity to begin another for the loan of twenty dollars which he faid he wanted to purchafe coffee; this request, which their know. ledge of the Arabs taught them to

confider but as an indirect mode of begging, their fituation induced them to comply with; and the crafty veteran received them with many profeffions of gratitude, and promifes to expedite their journey.

The next morning was ushered in by a visit from the fhaik, attended by the principal Arabs of the town, whofe errand was to fee what they could strip the travellers of before their departure, 200 camels of the caravan having arrived the preceding evening. When the gentlemen determined to bring them to the point of naming the fum total they were to pay for carriage to Ghinnah, they delivered the following bill:

To the government of Cofire for its protection To twelve camels from hence to Ghinnah Two foldiers for a guard To a prefent to the fhaik

Dollars.

for his company maik}

100

80

10

15

205

It is to be obferved that the ufual hire of a camel for that journey was but two dollars; they paid the money however on the spot, to the great fatisfaction of their visitors, placing all their fufferings to the account of the vizier of Yambo. The fufpicions of their concealed wealth would not let the fhaik part with these travellers without itill more extortion; for he came the next morning and told them in plain terms, that he must have more money. He condefcended indeed to place this requifition to the account of the people of the town and country, who had been peftering him for prefents from

them;