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ALGERIA 
 
‘ No man,’ saith Lipsius in an epistle to Phil. Lanoms, 
 a noble friend of his, now ready to make a voyage, ‘can be 
 such a stock or stone, whom that pleasant speculation of 
 countries, cities, towns, rivers will not affect 
 
 Burton’s Anatomy of Melancholy 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS 
 
 BY 
 
 GEORGE 
 
 GASKELL 
 
 AUTHOR OF 
 
 ‘DESCRIPTIVE SKETCHES OF ITALIAN TOWNS ’ ‘ THE TRAITOR, A 
 
 ‘POLITICAL MOVEMENT IN AUSTRIA IN 1848 AND 1849 
 TRANSLATED FROM THE GERMAN’ 
 
 ETC. 
 
 drama’ 
 
 LONDON 
 
 SMITH, ELDER, & CO., 15 WATERLOO PLACE 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ' 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 % 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
TO 
 
 MY BELOVED WIFE 
 
 THE INSEPARABLE COMPANION OF MY JOURNEY THROUGH LIFE 
 WHO IS ASSOCIATED WITH ALL THAT MAKES ITS PATH HAPPY 
 
 I OFFER THESE RECOLLECTIONS OF ONE OF ITS 
 
 PLEASANTEST EPISODES 
 

 
 
 
 
 I 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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PREFACE. 
 
 The AUTHOR of the following pages has often asked 
 himself, how it happens that narratives of travels are in 
 general so dry and dull, whilst travelling itself is so de¬ 
 lightful and instructive. 
 
 To visit foreign lands is not all that is necessaiy to 
 enable the tourist to draw a pen-and-ink picture of the 
 scenery, and to describe the manners and customs of 
 the inhabitants. Taste and feeling must be at the base 
 
 of all. 
 
 If some knowledge is required to form a correct 
 opinion of art, as it is displayed in the architecture and 
 adornments of a town, how much more refined and 
 delicate is the sentiment which teaches us to appreciate 
 the beauties of nature, where we must ftel what we see. 
 Few are gifted with this faculty of perception. It is 
 however possible to possess all these requirements, and 
 yet write a tedious book ; for it is not enough to receive 
 impressions ourselves, we must be able to communicate 
 them agreeably to others, taste and judgment accom- 
 
VIII 
 
 PREFACE . 
 
 panying the pen in a pleasing and animated style of 
 writing. 
 
 A description ought to place the scene so clearly 
 before the mind’s eye that the reader may, as it were, 
 see it. A book which does this may be compared to a 
 mirror that gives back faithfully all that is reflected in 
 it. One which does not is like a bad glass whose 
 misty surface either shows objects indistinctly or distorts 
 them to the sight. Many authors who have distin¬ 
 guished themselves in other branches of literature have 
 failed in this. 
 
 In the chapters on the excursions, the writer has 
 deviated from the custom of travellers who relate all 
 that happens to them and all they do, although such 
 personalities interest nobody but themselves. He has 
 endeavoured to take a broad view of what comes under 
 the notice of the reader—omitting trifling details unless 
 they serve to illustrate the subject—in the hope of con¬ 
 veying a better idea of the whole. 
 
 How far he has succeeded in representing Algeria as 
 it is , must be left to the public to determine ; but if feeling 
 pleasure in describing what he has seen, writing con 
 amove, and an artist’s enthusiasm for the beautiful land 
 in which he has passed many happy days, enter into the 
 elements of success, the author modestly hopes that this 
 attempt to impart to narrative some of the charms 
 of travelling will not be unwelcome to the reader. 
 
HISTORICAL NOTICE . 1 
 
 
 To investigate the origin of nations and races is an in¬ 
 teresting subject of research. 
 
 If, at a recent period when under the dominion of 
 the Arabs and Turks, little light was thrown on the 
 modern history of Algeria, in far deeper obscurity is 
 involved all that relates to the primitive inhabitants of 
 Northern Africa. Sallust the historian, who was pro- 
 consul or governor of the Roman possessions there, 
 nearly two thousand years ago, tells us that they were 
 the Gsetulians and Lybians—afterwards called Berbers— 
 a rude and simple people who were without laws and 
 had no particular form of government. 
 
 After the death of Hercules in Spain, his army, 
 which was composed of many nationalities, disorganised 
 by the death of their chief, and by the disputes of the 
 numerous rival pretenders who aspired to the command, 
 soon dispersed. Amongst them were many Medes and 
 Persians who crossed over to Africa, and settled on the 
 beautiful coast opposite to Spain and Italy. Here, by 
 frequent intermarriages with the Gsetulians, the races 
 became amalgamated. As these tribes often changed one 
 part of the country for another, in search of pasturage 
 
X 
 
 HISTORICAL NOTICE. 
 
 for their flocks, they called themselves Numidians, that 
 is nomades, or wandering shepherds. 
 
 Later on, many Phenicians established themselves on 
 the African shofes, till B.C. 860, Dido, sister of the king 
 of Tyre, founded Carthage, .which continued to prosper 
 in the midst of constant contention with the people 
 whose territory she had invaded. Jarbas, king of the 
 Gsetulians and of the heterogeneous hordes who had 
 been brought together, vainly endeavoured to unite his 
 fortunes to those of the tyrannical princess who had 
 built Carthage. 
 
 At this time was laid the foundation of the future 
 grandeur of the republic. Almost the whole of Northern 
 Africa was subjected to its sway ; the Berbers alone, 
 shut up in their mountain fastnesses, preserved their 
 independence. The Carthaginians dedicated themselves 
 particularly to commercial pursuits, and by degrees be¬ 
 came masters of the sea. The possession of Sicily, how¬ 
 ever, brought them into collision with the Romans, and 
 gave rise to the obstinate struggles known in history as 
 the Punic Wars. At length, after long and sanguinary 
 conflicts, Carthage fell, B.C. 45, under the invincible arms 
 of Rome. Once masters of the land, including some of 
 the adjoining parts of Numidia, the Romans organised 
 a system of government which should secure to them 
 the country they had conquered. Having first seized on 
 all the strategical points, they proceeded to form settle¬ 
 ments or colonies, so as to introduce a Roman popula¬ 
 tion on the soil of Africa. The Berbers had often taken 
 part in the wars between the Carthaginians and the 
 Romans, fighting sometimes on one side and sometimes 
 on the other, according to the advantages offered by 
 either party. After the destruction of Carthage several 
 of their chiefs reigned with the title of king, under the 
 protectorate of the Romans. The most celebrated of 
 
HISTORICAL NOTICE. 
 
 xi 
 
 these was Jugurtha, who, conjointly with his cousins 
 Hiempsal and Adherbal, inherited the kingdom from his 
 uncle Micipsa. Jugurtha caused Hiempsal to be assas¬ 
 sinated, and robbed Adherbal of his sceptre. The 
 Romans having interfered in the dispute, ordered that 
 Numidia should be equally divided between the two 
 surviving princes. The commissioners sent to define 
 these limits, being bribed by Jugurtha, assigned the 
 coast to him, and gave the interior which was less fertile 
 to young Adherbal. Jugurtha, still dissatisfied with 
 this partition, where the advantage was altogether on his 
 side, attacked and took Cirta —Constantine—and having 
 made the unfortunate Adherbal prisoner, he put him to 
 a cruel death. 
 
 The Romans flew to revenge the son of their former 
 ally, and, by a stratagem, succeeded in capturing Jugur¬ 
 tha, whose obstinate resistance had prolonged the war. 
 Bocchus, his father-in-law, king of Mauritania, who had 
 betrayed him, received Numidia as a recompense for his 
 treachery. The Eastern part was divided between 
 Hiempsal II. and Mandrestal, two Numidian princes, and 
 the Roman republic ; and, as this last portion included 
 the coast—for it extended to the former possessions of 
 Carthage—it formed a rich annexation to the proconsu¬ 
 late province of Africa. Juba I., who succeeded his father 
 Hiempsal, unfortunately took arms against Caesar, and, 
 being vanquished, he put an end to his life. The king¬ 
 dom was then united to the Roman empire B.C. 47* 
 Sallust was at this time sent to Africa as proconsul, but 
 the historian did not distinguish himself in the administra¬ 
 tion of justice. Shortly afterwards young Juba II., who 
 on the death of his father had been taken to Rome, now 
 married to Selene, daughter of Cleopatra and Antony, 
 returned to reign over his native country, where the 
 ' family of Bocchus was extinct, and Massessylia was 
 
xn 
 
 HIS TOXICAL NOTICE. 
 
 given to him under the name of Caesarian Mauritania, 
 reaching from the river Moulouia to the river Ampsaga 
 (Oued-el-Kebir, or Roumel, east of Djidjelly), to which 
 was added Gaetulia, the less fertile region of the high 
 table-lands in the interior of the country. This new 
 monarch abandoned Siga, which till then had been 
 the capital of Western Mauritania, and established his 
 throne at Jol, founded by the Carthaginians, and gave 
 to his new capital the name of Julia Caesarea, the re¬ 
 mains of which are still to be seen. During a prospe¬ 
 rous reign of forty-five years this king occupied himself 
 chiefly with the arts and sciences, and so greatly was he 
 esteemed for the encouragement he gave to their ad¬ 
 vancement that the Athenians erected statues to him, 
 and his own subjects raised altars to his memory. Pto¬ 
 lemy, his son, did not follow in the glorious steps of 
 his father. He, however, powerfully contributed to crush 
 the rebellion of Tacfarinas, a Moorish adventurer who 
 excited the whole of Numidia to revolt. In concert 
 with the Proconsul Dolabella, Ptolemy vanquished and 
 slew this rebel. But the magnificence displayed by the 
 king having irritated the vanity of Caligula, that tyrant 
 caused him to be assassinated, and Caesarian Mauri¬ 
 tania was again annexed to the Roman empire. This 
 period witnessed the greatest developement of art on the 
 soil of Africa. The prosperity of the country had at¬ 
 tained its height ; now were built those monuments 
 whose remains twelve centuries of barbarous devasta¬ 
 tion were not able to efface. Tiberius issued a decree 
 which forbade Africa being chosen as a place of exile, 
 ‘ for,’ said the Emperor, ‘ those who leave Rome in Italy 
 find a second Rome in Africa.’ The extravagance of 
 some private people was so great that Nero, becoming 
 jealous of this luxury, ordered their property to be con¬ 
 fiscated. The tyranny of the Romans, the crimes com- 
 
HISTORICAL NOTICE . 
 
 X1U 
 
 mitted by their delegates, and the ravages of insurgents 
 wasted the resources of the land; but even these evils 
 could not wrest the fertile plains of Numidia and Mauri¬ 
 tania from the eternal city, which drew a great part of 
 its subsistence from them. The tribes who inhabited 
 the highlands of the interior imagining—in consequence 
 of the conspiracies excited by the partisans of Vitel- 
 lius—that the moment for declaring their independ¬ 
 ence had arrived, flew to arms, but being subdued by 
 Maximus Galerius, heir presumptive to the Imperial 
 throne, a new subdivision of their territory followed. 
 
 Christianity might have softened the manners of the 
 fierce inhabitants of Northern Africa, but the attempt to 
 spread it only brought out the energy of their character, 
 and made more evident the tenacity with which they 
 held to their own religion. The persecutions against the 
 Christians were conducted with great barbarity for more 
 than a century, during which many martyrs proved their 
 constancy by dying for the cause of truth. 
 
 Firmus, one of the great chiefs of the Moors, having 
 called together the barbarous tribes of the mountainous 
 region which was afterwards known by the name of the 
 province of Titteri, raised the standard of revolt against 
 the governor Romanus, whose exactions had driven the 
 people to despair. Firmus organised a powerful force and 
 seized upon Julia Caesarea, which he destroyed ; but 
 soon after, being captured by Theodose, the Moorish 
 chieftain strangled himself, and his body was sent to 
 Setif as a proof of his death. His brother Gildon, who 
 had remained faithful to the Romans, was invested by 
 them with the title of governor of the African provinces. 
 He oppressed his own countrymen and, after a reign of 
 unheard-of cruelty and debauchery, wishing to assert his 
 independence, perished in the attempt; for, being pur¬ 
 sued, he at last found no other refuge but suicide to 
 
XIV 
 
 HISTORICAL NOTICE. 
 
 escape from the army of Honorius. The Roman 
 governors at this time diminished the power of Rome 
 wherever they represented it. Count Boniface, a man of 
 merit in some respects, who succeeded Gildon, in order 
 to revenge himself for loss of favour at court betrayed 
 his country, and through his instrumentality the Vandals 
 of Spain, led by Genseric, invaded the three Mauritanias 
 which had been promised them, establishing their head¬ 
 quarters at Bougie, and after driving out Boniface, who 
 had introduced them to Africa, they destroyed Carthage 
 and the principal cities. Genseric who, having sacked 
 Rome, had returned laden with the spoils of Italy, was 
 now the real emperor of the West; his navy was for¬ 
 midable, but piracy seems to have been the only 
 avocation for which his barbarous subjects had inclina¬ 
 tion or capacity, and their descendants had never any¬ 
 thing so much at heart as to promote it ; for, following 
 up what had its origin at this period, they became the 
 corsairs who committed the piratical depredations when 
 Algeria was afterwards under the dominion of the Turks. 
 Gelimer, A.D. 534, having occupied the throne of his 
 uncle Hilderic, the ally of Justinian Emperor of Con¬ 
 stantinople, the latter sent Belisarius into Africa at the 
 head of 35,000 men, who subdued the country and took 
 Gelimer prisoner. Thus fell the empire of the Vandals. 
 
 The Numidians, led by Jabbas, a chief of the tribes 
 of Mount Aures, now attacked the Grecian Romans. 
 They seconded the revolt of Stoza, a Greek ; and, after 
 his defeat, welcomed him to their mountain-retreats, 
 where they were pursued but never conquered. The 
 Exarchs, who governed the provinces for the Byzantine 
 Emperor, were obliged to be constantly at war with the 
 Berbers, Moors, and Numidians, who had resolved to 
 drive out of the land all the inhabitants who were of 
 European descent or had European customs. The 
 
HISTORICAL NOTICE. 
 
 xv 
 
 Greek soldiers who had revolted, finding fierce auxiliaries 
 in the native chiefs, devastation was for a long time the 
 only tactics of both parties, and the population was so 
 greatly diminished that Numidia became almost a 
 desert. 
 
 The successive incursions of the hordes of the Atlas 
 had confined the Byzantine Greeks to the narrow strip 
 of sea-coast when the Arab Mussulmans in several 
 expeditions invaded the North of Africa ; but not with¬ 
 out many battles and dreadful carnage did the Greek 
 generals and the Moors allow the Mahometans to 
 establish themselves in the country—called .by these last 
 invaders Moghreb, or land of the West—for they every¬ 
 where met with a formidable resistance. Queen Kama, 
 a Berber princess who reigned on Mount Aures A.D. 709, 
 devastated the whole coast, razed all buildings to the 
 ground, and destroyed the stately trees. According to 
 some authorities, these palaces and trees formed an unin¬ 
 terrupted continuation of magnificent edifices and groves 
 from Tripoli to Tangiers. Her object in causing this 
 extensive ruin was to disgust the Asiatics with the 
 prospect of having nothing but a waste to possess. These 
 attempts however failed, when opposed to the constancy 
 which is inspired by a spirit of proselytism ; and, after 
 dreadful massacres, Tarick, lieutenant of Mousa, dictated 
 the law of the Coran as far as Ceuta A.D 711, which 
 Count Julian still held for the Goths of Spain. This 
 Christian chief, to revenge himself for an injury done to 
 his daughter by King Roderic, made a treaty with the 
 Arabs, and introduced them into Spain. Multitudes of 
 Moors followed their conquerors in this expedition, and 
 the name of Moors was given to the Mussulmans 
 who from that time occupied the provinces they had 
 subjected. 
 
 After this, the Caliphs appointed commandants to 
 
XVI 
 
 HISTORICAL NOTICE. 
 
 rule in their African territory. Ibrahim—one of the 
 family of the Aghlabides—being named governor of 
 Kairwan by Haroun-el-Raschid, usurped the sceptre. 
 From this dynasty succeeded eleven monarchs, who 
 reigned during 108 years. These kings took Sicily, and 
 were distinguished for their splendour and their crimes. 
 Finally they were dethroned by the Fatimites, who, 
 coming invested with all the magnificence of the East, 
 now threw splendour over the West. When the Fatimite 
 Caliph, Moez-el-Din, conquered Egypt, he fixed the 
 seat of government there, and chose a Berber chief to 
 rule over his African possessions. After a time the 
 descendants of this delegate declared themselves in¬ 
 dependent, and established a dynasty which lasted 200 
 years, but it was greatly shaken towards the close of its 
 existence by Roger king of Sicily. 
 
 The Almohadan Emir of Marocco—carried on the 
 stream of an invasion which flowed from West to East, 
 now came to join these small states to his vast empire. 
 The Almohades—the second branch of the dynasty of 
 the Marocco Caliphs—whose capital was Tlemcen A.D. 
 1148, possessed in their turn the whole of central 
 Moghreb ; but their transitory power was soon replaced 
 by that of the Ziantes A.D. 1270, and by the Hafsytes, 
 who were now appointed to command. These rulers 
 often threw off their allegiance, and succeeded or failed 
 in attempting to make themselves masters of Algiers as 
 fortune decided for or against them ; but, even when 
 successful, they were not always able to keep what they 
 had acquired. Thus the whole country became a scene 
 of incessant war, which devastated the land and caused 
 great anarchy. 
 
 It does not appear that much of historical interest 
 occurred at this turbulent period, when intestine strife and 
 rebellion prevailed ; in fact, the state of the country 
 
HISTORICAL NOTICE. 
 
 XVI 
 
 during these centuries, and under the subsequent 
 piratical masters of the soil, was not favourable to 
 literature, and the little that has been recorded is of 
 doubtful authenticity. We shall therefore mention only 
 some episodes which belong rather to the history of 
 contemporary nations than to that of the Arabs, a.d. 
 1270, Louis IX., wishing to liberate and protect the 
 Christians, sent an expedition against Tunis; but, owing 
 to the breaking out of the pest, and the death of the 
 king, the attempt ended in failure. Some years after 
 this Peter III., king of Aragon, despatched a fleet to 
 ravage the coast of Northern Africa, and a few years 
 later his army took Collo, which they abandoned shortly 
 afterwards. In 1309 the Castilians and the Aragonese 
 effected a landing at Ceuta, and captured the town. 
 The Aragonese again appeared on the littoral in 1432, 
 when they sacked Djerba, but did not remain there. In 
 1481 they obtained possession of Melila which they 
 kept. At the close of the fifteenth century the Moors, 
 driven out of Spain, settled on some points of the 
 African coast, and gave themselves up to piracy. The 
 Spaniards who were disquieted by them, led by Diego 
 de Cordova, made themselves masters of Mers el-Kebir ; 
 and, under the conduct of Cardinal Ximenes, they seized 
 upon Oran 1509. In the year following they took 
 Bougie, and possessed themselves of a fortified rock in 
 front of Algiers. The Algerines, menaced by this fort,, 
 called to their aid Baba-Aroudj—Barbarossa. This 
 
 famous corsair, who had just made an unsuccessful attack 
 on Bougie, but whom the capture of Djidjelly consoled 
 for the check sustained, hastened to the assistance of a 
 town he greatly coveted on account of its favourable 
 position. Pic lost no time in proclaiming himself king ; 
 and he maintained his position in spite of the Spaniards, 
 who attacked the city in 1515. An intestine revolt 
 
 a 
 
xvm 
 
 HISTORICAL NOTICE. 
 
 having called him to Tlemcen, where the Marquis of 
 Comares, governor of Oran, came to surround him, he 
 was obliged to flee with a small number of his followers. 
 Escaping, he was pursued and slam whilst defending 
 himself to the last. 
 
 Ka'fr-el-Din-Barbarossa, on the death of his brother 
 becoming known, was recognised as King of Algiers 
 1517, where he was so fortunate as to witness in the same 
 year the failure of the enterprise of Hugo de Moncade 
 and to take from Martin de Vargas the fortress of Penon 
 which defended the port. This success did not prevent 
 him from doing homage to Selim, Emperor of Constan¬ 
 tinople, who however put the eunuch Hassan in his place 
 as Pacha of Algiers. Kair-el-Din therefore did not 
 witness the sanguinary defeat of Charles V., October 23, 
 1551, who landed an army of 24,000 men near the town. 
 After this catastrophe the insolence of the Algerine 
 pirates knew no bounds. Salah Rais, Hassan Barbarossa, 
 Dragut, and others boasted of being the terror of Chris¬ 
 tendom, whilst their conquests in Africa continued to 
 progress. Tlemcen, to which they were often called by 
 the dissensions of the Zyantes, Bougie the impregnable, 
 Oran which had been lost, retaken by the Spaniards and 
 again abandoned, had all yielded to their despotism. 
 The imperial city of Fez itself had twice been obliged to 
 submit to Cherifs appointed by them. The kings of 
 Tougourt and of Ouargla had been beaten, and the 
 haughty pachas of the Regency were now able to divide 
 their empire into eighteen provinces. But a new and 
 less complicated administrative partition was soon after 
 established, and the three Beyliks of Oran, Constantine, 
 and Titteri were formed in order that all the smaller 
 states might be included in them. Whilst these events 
 were taking place the seditions of the Koulouglis had 
 been suppressed. In appointing governors to her African 
 
HISTORICAL NOTICE. 
 
 XIX 
 
 possessions the Ottoman Porte always showed great 
 vacillation, and in many instances her representative had 
 no sooner arrived than he was recalled, again sent back 
 to his post, or another was put in his place. These 
 delegates did not rule alone, for a person chosen by the 
 Janissaries, who received the title of Bey, was invested 
 with joint authority, which became a constant source of 
 rivalry and dispute ; -for the beys, being supported by the 
 soldiers who. had elected them, always endeavoured to 
 obtain the whole power. Some went so far as to send 
 back to Constantinople the pachas who had come as 
 governors to Algiers, whilst many were assassinated. 
 On the death of Bey Carabdy 1732, no fewer than six 
 aspirants to sovereignty were put to death within the 
 next twenty-four hours ; and, not long before Algeria 
 passed into other hands, four beys were murdered between 
 the years 1808 and 1815. In course of time the beys who, 
 each in his turn, had followed the first who had been 
 chosen by the Janissaries, succeeded in supplanting the 
 representatives sent from Constantinople, and they 
 eventually obtained from the Sultan the formal recogni¬ 
 tion of their authority when it had been acquired by 
 election. It was under one of these princes—called Deys 
 by the Europeans—named Hassan Pacha, that the 
 quarrel with the French Government began, a quarrel 
 which led to the conquest of the country in 1830. 
 
 Our description of Algeria as it is will bear testi¬ 
 mony to the prosperity of these beautiful provinces since 
 they have belonged to France. 
 

 
 
 
 
 - 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 < 
 
 
 
 
 % 
 
 
 t 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 •O#—■ 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 page: 
 
 Africa as a whole—Algeria—The Queen of the Mediterranean—As¬ 
 pect from the Sea—The Pirate Town—Impressions on Landing— 
 
 The Modern City ; streets, shops, bazaars, &c.—The Arab Quarter 
 —Architecture—Homes of the Women—The Arabs—Labyrinth of 
 Streets—Native Shopkeepers—Algiers from the Heights of the 
 Casbah 1 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Beautiful Background to the City—Vegetation— Vert sombre— Country 
 Roads—Intelligent Soldiers—Algerian Landscape—Bouzareah— 
 Magnificent Prospect—Appreciation of the Beauties of Nature— 
 Mustapha—Few Resources for Strangers—Jardin d’Acclimatation . io 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Privileges of Algeria—A glance at Tunis and Marocco—Imperial 
 Present—An impartial Marabout—Algeria under the Regency—A 
 Jew on the Good Old Times.*. r 9 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Native Population—Arabs and Kabyles—The ‘Men of Tents ’ and 
 the ‘ Men of Houses ’—The Lybians or Berbers 2,500 years ago ; 
 unchanged in the present day—Personal Courage of the Kabyles, 
 Arabs of the Tell, and of the Sahara—The Moors . . • 2 4 
 
xxu 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 Native Inhabitants (continued)—The Turks—Days that are gone— 
 
 Arab on Civilisation—Barbarossa—Black Mail—-The Vulture 
 swoops down on its Quarry—A romantic Episode—A strong Re¬ 
 semblance—The Touaregs ........ 30 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Native Population (continued)—Their Character—Reserved with 
 Strangers—Good and Bad Qualities—Charitable to the Poor— 
 Manner towards each other—Grateful—Respect Age—Sober—Ab¬ 
 stemious—Hospitable—Lower Orders Dirty—Europeanized Arabs 
 —Thieving Propensities—Regard for the Law—Cruel to Animals— 
 Vivisection .......... 38 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Native Inhabitants (continued)—Arab Women—Dress of the Lower 
 Class—Love of Finery—The Adjar—A Peep-hole for one Eye—M. 
 Fillias on Arab Women —Marriage—How the Arabs treat their 
 Married Companions—Divorce—The Wives of Arab Chiefs—The 
 Kabyle Wife—Mooi’ish Women—Costume—Ambulating Sacks— 
 
 The Jewesses—A Daughter of Eve—No Arab Artists—Our Model 46 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Native Inhabitants (continued)—The Jews—Their degraded Con¬ 
 dition under the Regency—Emancipation—Physiognomy of the 
 Algerian Jews—Disposition—Peculiarities in their Character . . 60 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Native Inhabitants (continued)—The Blacks—Not the Negro type— 
 Their Happy Disposition—The Blacks of Algeria before the Con¬ 
 quest—Black Women—A Scene in the Street . . . -63, 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Native Inhabitants (continued)—Religion—Insurrections fomented by 
 the Marabouts; Religious rather than Political—On what the 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 XX11I 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Religion of a. People may depend—The Mahometan Cieed 
 Prayer—Arab at his Devotions—Charity—Almsgiving—Spirit of 
 Charity -Fasting—Fast of the Rhamadan—Pilgrimage—The 
 Mosques—Women's Souls—Marriage between Christians and 
 Muslims—The Future State—Eternal Punishment—Reflections— 
 
 The Crescent ... ••••••• 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Native Inhabitants (continued)—Predestination and Superstition—The 
 Cai'd and the Dancing Girl—Sidi Abd-el-ICader Djelaly—Faith in 
 Omens—A Voice crying in the Wilderness—The Evil Eye—The 
 Painter and the Donkey—The Khouans Aissaouas—Sorcery in 
 Marocco. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Native Inhabitants (concluded)—Language—Our Countrymen as Lin¬ 
 guists—Arab French—Natives as Models for the Artist—Subjects 
 for the Brush and Pencil in Algeria—Eyes profane—' Paese si va, 
 usanza si trova’—Only one !—Closing Remarks on the Indigenous 
 Population ...•••••••• 93 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Arabs and Kabyles coming to Market—Exportation of Produce—Pic¬ 
 turesque Market-places—Profusion of Good Things—Life in the 
 South—The Merchant of Sicily ...•••• 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Climate of Algiers—Simple Test of its Dryness—Appearance of the 
 Country in Winter—Temperature compared with Italy—A State¬ 
 ment of every Phase in the Weather from November to April- 
 General Observations—Sirocco in Algiers and after crossing the 
 
 S ea _Dews—The Interior colder and hotter than the Littoral— 
 
 Old Lady on Climate—A Spoiled Child of Old Time—The glorious 
 
XXIV 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 TAGE 
 
 Delightful Excursions, taking Algiers as a Starting-point—General 
 Features of the Country—The Three Provinces—Our Tour— 
 Algiers from Hussein Dey—Blidah—Hotels in Algeria—Bois Sacre 
 — Olive-trees—Plain of the Metidja—Gorges de la Chiffa—Beau¬ 
 tiful Scenery—Monkeys—Savage Visitors to the Gorge—The 
 Golden Eagle—The Pedlar asleep—A Full Stop— Our ‘we’— 
 
 ‘ Una venta en despoblado ’—Approach to Medeah . . . 11 7 
 
 CPIAPTER XVI. 
 
 Medeah—View towards the Atlas Mountains—Vegetation—Culture 
 of the Vine—Wine—Legend—Arab Cavalry—-Fleet Steeds—The 
 Sahel, a famous Wine District—The Monks of La Trappe—Battle 
 of Slaoueli—Coleah, the Ploly City—Jardin des Zouaves—Coleah 
 to Cherchell . . . . . . . . . .132 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 Tombeau de la Chretienne—Legend—Modern Villages—Tipaza— 
 Road to Marengo—The Lion and the Coachman—The Emigrant’s 
 Farm—Marengo to Cherchell—Roman Aqueduct—Site of Julia 
 Caesarea—Bit of its History—The Modem Town of Cherchell— 
 Conquests without Language—Compulsory Education—Cherchell 
 for the Tourist and Antiquarian—Society—The Commandant—The 
 Captain of Zouaves under a Cloud—Drame de Cherchell . .141 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Romantic Roads—Hot Springs of Hamman Rira—A Roman Water¬ 
 ing-place—Ruins—The Zakkar—Milianah—View of the Atlas 
 Range over the Plain of the Chetiff, compared with the Chain of 
 the None Alps in Salzburg (see note 15 for invitation)—The Con¬ 
 vivial Meal under different Lights—The Tented Tourist—Tenied- 
 
 el-Had—Magnificent Forest—Mostaganem—Aspect of the Town_ 
 
 Arzew—Oran—Something of its History—Imposing Appearance of 
 the City—Beautiful Road along the Bay to Mers-el-Kebir—Bains 
 de la Reine—Oran to Mascara—Negro Village—-Salvator-Rosa- 
 like Scene—Mascara—Abd-el-Kader—Route to Thiaret—Our 
 Travelling Companion—Story under the Olive-tree . . . 15S 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 XXV 
 
 » 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 PAGIi 
 
 OURIDA : AN ARAB STORY. 
 
 Ali ben Ahmed’s Daughter . . . . . . . - 17 1 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 Ourida’s Secret . . . . . . . . • . 17S 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 The Appointment . , . . . . • - • .182 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 The Lion-hunt .....••••• * 9 ° 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 The Locket *97 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 The Discovery. 2 °6 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 ourida ( concluded ). 
 
 C’est l’inattendu qui arrive toujours.214 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 Second Excursion—Palestro—Insurrection of 1871—Commencement 
 of the Rebellion—Plans for conducting the Movement—The Revolt 
 assumes a Form of Religious Fanaticism—Threatening Aspect of 
 Affairs—Omar Ben Zamoun chosen to command—The Insurgents 
 march on Palestro and Alma—The Attack ..... 
 
 b 
 
XXV 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Massacre of the Prisoners—The Maison Cantonniere attacked and 
 taken—The Chiefs hold a Council of War—A French Column 
 arrives from Algiers—Engagement between the French and Arabs 
 at Souflat—The Insurgents defeated—Episodes of the War—Re¬ 
 flections on the Conduct of the Natives . . . • - 2 3 * 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 Palestro to the Coast—Picturesque Approach to Dellys—Valley of 
 the Sebaou—The Little Saragossa—Rusuccures—Kair-el-Din— 
 Land from the Sea—Sea from the Land—Night—Contemplation of 
 the Firmament—Reflections—Shore by Moonlight—Night Scene 
 on Deck—Daybreak—Another Picture—Beautiful Situation of 
 Bougie (Saidas)—A glance at History—Djidjelly—How it was 
 ruined by Success-—Fight between Wild Animals—On Deck—The 
 Elements in different Moods—Friendly Tobacco —Philippeville 
 from the Sea—Rusicada—Stora—Bone—Hippone—St. Augustin— 
 Road to Guelma—Drama in the Glen—Road to St. Charles—Lake 
 of Fetzara—Forests—Conflagrations—New Forest Law—Landscape 
 between St. Charles and Constantine . . . . . .241 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 First Sight of Constantine—The Queen of picturesque Cities—The 
 Chasm round the Town—The Falls of the Roumel—High above— 
 Storks—The Silent Stone—Open Country—The Mansoura—Con¬ 
 stantine as a Town—Arab Chiefs dining a la Frangaise—Our 
 Countrymen Abroad—Language of Shakespeare—Two Categories— 
 Arab Quarter at Constantine—Sidi Rached ..... 253 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 Philosophical Indolence—Independence—Toilet in a Garden—The 
 Labourer worthy of his Hire—Under the Shade of a Palm-tree- 
 Charms of Solitude—A Date in the Wilderness—The Two Arabs— 
 Climate of Constantine—Lions’ Cubs—The Lion and the Tourist— 
 
 The Soldier and the Lion—The Lion at the Fountain . . . 260 
 
CONTEXTS . 
 
 xxvii 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 FACE 
 
 Our Travelling Companions on leaving Constantine—Conversation 
 under Difficulties—Our Marabout—A Dissertation on the Adjar— 
 
 The Said—Batna—The Cedar Forest—Spais on the Lion— Ren- 
 contre dans la Foret des Cedres —About the Lion—What a Lion can 
 do—Noble Game for Red Coats—Single Combat with the Sba— 
 Lion-hunting—Result of Defeat or Victory ..... 269 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII. 
 
 Passion for the Chase—Remarks on an apparent Contradiction in the 
 Arab Character—Native Women and the Said—Royal Bill of Fare 
 '—Attack on the Azib—Fate of the Marauder—Zoology of Algeria 
 —The Panther ; Manner of hunting it—The Wild Boar—Combat 
 between a Lion and a Solitaire—How the Panther deals with the 
 Sanglier—The Hyena and the Jackal—Their ignoble Natures . 280 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 The Lion’s Share —Lambessa— M. Feraud on Classic Ground—A 
 Page of History—Monuments of the Past—Batna to El Kantara— 
 Roughing it—The Oued Branis—Foumes-Sahara or the Mouth of 
 the Desert—Beautiful Defile—Oasis—Desolate Tract of Country . 294 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 
 Magnificent View from the Col de Sfa- Saharian Scene—The Pro¬ 
 mised Land—The Palm-grown Oasis—Sea of Sand—Sunset over 
 the Sahara—Biskra—Source of its Prosperity—Exportation—The 
 Almees—Ruins of the Mud-built Capital of the Ziban—Sala-Hin— 
 
 The Mineral Springs of Algeria . . . . . . .301 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV. 
 
 The Spots on the Sand —Terra Incognita —Lodging at the Caid’s— 
 Hotel a la Belle Etoile !—Why we wished to see the Desert—On 
 Camel-back—The Sahara —Ni Reyni Roque —Serpents a Cornes— 
 The Englishman’s Boots—Denizens of the Sahara—Ostrich-hunt- 
 
XXVlll 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Future Prospects—Shorter Passages to Algiers—New Railways in 
 Course of Construction, and others projected—Algiers to Constan¬ 
 tine by Rail—Affreville to Boghari by the Valley of the Cheliff— 
 
 Two Lines from the Littoral to the Sahara—Alfa—Bougie to Setif— 
 Bone to Guelma and Tebessa—Tebessa to Tlemcen—An Inland 
 Sea—A Climate in Reserve—Algeria—A Word at Parting . • 3 12 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 o 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 THE QUEEN OF THE MEDITERRANEAN* 
 
 I saw from out the wave her structures rise 
 
 As from the stroke of the enchanter’s wand. —Byron. 
 
 And wand’ring oft the crowded streets along, 
 
 The native gestures of the passing throng 
 Attentive mark.—Du Fresnoy. 
 
 Africa is usually associated with sandy deserts, hot 
 siroccos, and barren hills ; it brings to the mind a land 
 peopled by uncivilised savages with black skins and ugly 
 features. 
 
 However wild and uninviting the interior of this gteat 
 continent may be, the Algerian coast of the Mediterranean 
 is as beautiful as the opposite shores of Italy, with a 
 richer and more wonderful vegetation. 
 
 When the traveller from Europe, who has passed two 
 nights at sea, steps on deck in the morning, he sees before 
 him the magnificent city of Algiers, its white Moorish 
 buildings, minarets, mosques, cupolas, and terrace-roofed 
 
 2 For Notes see end of the volume. 
 
2 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 houses, which rise in one unbroken mass up the heights, 
 standing in dazzling brilliancy against the blue sky of 
 Africa. 
 
 Unlike Genoa and Naples, which, built round their 
 charming bays, seem to retire from the water, the African 
 Nereid steps boldly into the sea. 
 
 The coast and hills, covered with the deep green of 
 Southern vegetation, form a dark background, before 
 which the shining city advances in full relief of light and 
 shade—a picture which, once seen, can never be effaced 
 from the mind. 
 
 So must the pirate town have looked years ago, gay 
 and smiling, when Christian slaves pined in captivity, 
 and deeds of horror were done within its walls ; the same 
 blue waves then bore the unfortunate bark to a treach¬ 
 erous shore which now carry it in safety to a friendly 
 port. 
 
 On landing in Algiers we are not disappointed with 
 the appearance of the place, as we are in many Eastern 
 cities, which look beautiful only from the deck of the 
 steamer. The lower or French quarter is in the style of 
 a European capital. Facing the sea the esplanade or 
 boulevard, with its houses on lofty arcades, has an im¬ 
 posing effect. At the time of the Regency this part of 
 Algiers was built on, and about, rocks down to the water, 
 where the chebeks of Barbarossa, the terror of Christian 
 nations, lay at anchor. In its original state it would have 
 pleased an artist better than the modern harbour with its 
 classical structures ; for civilisation is often more practical 
 than it is picturesque. 
 
 In the European town we find all the comforts we 
 enjoy at home: coaches, omnibuses, cafes, shops, and 
 
ALGIERS. 
 
 3 
 
 restaurants; whilst in the Arab quarter we admire 
 Moorish architecture, and the varied costumes of Arabs, 
 Moors, Turks and other natives ; features which are seen 
 together in the new streets and squares. It is this union 
 of civilised life, side by side with all that we associate 
 with the East, that is so striking in Algiers, and the effect 
 is the greater from the contrast being so sudden. 
 
 As variety is pleasing, the recently arrived tourist is 
 delighted with what he sees, and well he does to enjoy 
 the novelty of the scene whilst the impression lasts, for 
 it wears off when the spectacle becomes familiar to him. 
 At first it is quite a show to see women in adjars—a kind 
 
 of kerchief which covers all the face except the eyes_ 
 
 move about like white dominoes, bazaars filled with 
 curious articles and Eastern nick-nacks; Algerian, Tunis, 
 and Marocco wares, all brightness and colour. Moorish 
 cafes, in which people sit cross-legged, gravely smoking 
 long pipes ; Moors on platforms, working gold and silver 
 thread on coloured cloth ; Arabs playing chess in the 
 streets ; and barbers’ shops, where the head is shaved 
 oftener than the chin. These and many other strange 
 sights have a particular attraction for the new-comer, 
 who is never tired of looking at the picture. 
 
 The names over the shops and bazaars call to mind 
 the stories of our childhood—Ben Ali, Hadl Ahmed, Ben 
 Turki, and the like. Then those of the streets—Bab-el- 
 Oued, Bab-Azoun, and the rest. The places in the 
 neighbourhood have also retained their original appella¬ 
 tions—Mustapha, Agha, Bouzareah, and so on. The 
 omnibuses—very numerous in Algiers—which take us to 
 them, have also strange, if not always Arab, names ; 
 le Lion du Desert, la Panthere, le Sanglier, are followed 
 
4 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 by the Sylphide, la belle Anglaise, belle Africaine, and 
 other pretty girls and savage animals. 
 
 A walk, or rather a climb, into the quarter inhabited 
 by the native population—a terra incognita, where all 
 is new and strange—must be interesting to the tourist 
 who comes for the first time to the land of the Arabs. 
 
 The streets, so like those in the East, have Egyptian 
 names, such as the Ruede Thebes, Nil, Sarrasin, Sphinx, 
 &c. We shall walk up some of them, and observe a few 
 of the most prominent characteristics. Many are as¬ 
 cended by steps, very steep and apparently interminable ; 
 others are paved. As we proceed we go through vaulted 
 passages with houses above them, built across the road. 
 In like manner single arches, old and moss-grown, often 
 bridge it over, framing a vista of irregular Moorish 
 buildings. 
 
 In the architecture of the old town each story pro¬ 
 jects beyond that below it, the part which advances 
 being sustained by inclined props resting against the 
 wall, so that the upper stories almost touch those opposite 
 to them. Thus, if we did not catch glimpses of blue sky 
 overhead, we might fancy ourselves walking in an arched 
 way. 
 
 The houses, instead of windows, having only little 
 grated peep-holes to the front, would seem blank and 
 lifeless were it not for the busy scene in the street. 
 
 In apartments looking on courts behind, the women—« 
 who must neither see nor be seen—pass their listless 
 existence, amusing themselves as well as they can. 
 These enclosures are often elegant seclusions, built 
 round with arcades on slender pillars, and have a fountain 
 and flowers in the middle. But what bird would care 
 
ALGIERS. 
 
 5 
 
 to live in a gilded cage ! We shall have other oppor¬ 
 tunities of noticing the privacy of Arab families. 
 
 We see some Moorish palaces with ogive windows, 
 •in the style the Venetians have imitated ; but of these 
 there are not many. 
 
 The thoroughfares being nearly closed above, as we 
 have described, the sun penetrates to the pavement only 
 in the small squares, and into some of the streets which 
 are a little wider than the rest; but when it strikes the 
 upper part of the walls, and plays above the super¬ 
 structures of the quaint old buildings, the light thus 
 strongly contrasted with the almost gloomy shade below 
 causes fine effects which the artist seizes for his picture. 
 And what pictures there are to paint in this Arab quarter ! 
 How strange and original are the houses which stand in 
 picturesque groups, with a dome or minaret rising behind! 
 What studies of character in the natives who cluster 
 round the fountains with their copper jugs ! What bits 
 of architecture are hidden in dark nooks and blind alleys ! 
 What curious shops we see, and still more curious are the 
 things sold in them ! What peeps into Arab interiors., 
 through the little arched vestibules with oval doors ! 
 What fine forms are seated on the steps, framed like 
 pictures which indeed they make ! Sometimes a draped 
 figure stands by in an attitude which, for grace and 
 dignity, might serve as a model for a statue of Junius 
 Brutus. Some sit near what they sell ; whilst others, 
 stretched on the ground, enjoy the dolce far niente as 
 only a half-naked Arab can do. 
 
 The people are in the attire of another race. Black 
 men in white turbans ; Jews in the chechia and grey blue 
 jackets with silver buttons, embroidered vest, red sash, 
 
6 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 and full trowsers ; Jewesses in green silk ; Moors in their 
 showy costume, turbaned Turks, and sun-burnt Arabs ; 
 their dark faces and black beards set off by the white 
 burnous. Women in white meet us at every step ; and 
 what soft eyes look over the adjar which leaves so much 
 to the imagination ! In this Arab quarter we scarcely 
 see a man or woman in the Frank dress ; ample robes 
 and graceful drapery supply their place, and contrast 
 with our tight-fitting clothes. 
 
 For the uninitiated, the narrow streets of the old 
 Arab town are so mysterious and complicated that the 
 warning of the poet, ‘ Lasciate ogni speranza , voi, che 
 'titrate', might be inscribed at the entrance of the laby¬ 
 rinth. It is almost impossible for the stranger not to 
 lose himself. Having advanced a few steps, he sees 
 before him three or four openings into small lanes offered 
 for his choice ; he enters one, but soon finds that it is 
 again crossed like the meshes of a net. Unable to ask in 
 Arabic, after some hesitation he tries to thread his way, 
 which leads him into a blind alley, where he comes upon 
 an Arab family eating their couscoussou al fresco. 
 Going back and following the intricacies of the little 
 streets, he is attracted by some beautiful architecture,, 
 slight columns and a jet d’eau ; observing which he 
 ventures into a court, where a bevy of secluded ladies 
 scamper off on seeing the ‘evil eye’ of the Roumi. 
 Again pursuing his tortuous course, he enters a mosque 
 where, ignorant of the customs of the country, he violates 
 the sanctity of the temple by placing his infidel foot on 
 the sacred mat. 
 
 In the old town the shops are very small, so dim¬ 
 inutive indeed that the vender, sitting or standing in the 
 
ALGIERS. 
 
 7 
 
 middle of what he has to sell, is within reach of every 
 article. The fruit and flower dealers in particular do 
 business in a very confined space. They are almost 
 all Mzabis ; a race which claims descent from Ali, son-in- 
 law of the Prophet. They may be recognised by their 
 gandoura—a kind of blouse or frock made of woollen 
 stuff, spotted and striped with red, yellow, and blue, a 
 many-coloured dress which gives the wearers the ap¬ 
 pearance of harlequins. These men sit or stand in a 
 little square only large enough to allow them to turn 
 themselves. Around and above, up to the ceiling— 
 which is about the man’s own height when he stands—are 
 innumerable shelves and tiny drawers for groceries, &c., 
 all of which he can reach without moving from his place 
 even if he were able to do so. Thus barricaded by fruits 
 and flowers—protected by Pomona and Flora—he waits 
 patiently for the purchasers whom Fate may send him. 
 In the morning he enters his store, like Jack-in-a-box, by 
 a trap door, on which he stands during the day. When 
 he wishes to retire for the night he opens it, and dis¬ 
 appears from the scene like harlequin in a pantomime. 
 
 The shops and trades have many peculiarities which 
 distinguish them from those in the European town ; they 
 are of course too many to be described separately. 
 Amongst the most singular are the cook-shops, where all 
 kinds of unsavoury messes which can tempt the passers- 
 by are fried or stewed in kitchens open to the street. 
 Next come the cafes Manres ; where instead of reading 
 newspapers and troubling themselves about politics, the 
 natives drink coffee, smoke their chiboucks , play at damah, 
 listen to story-tellers, music and singing, chat or muse, 
 each according to his temperament or humour. 
 
8 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 There are no bazaars in the Arab quarter, like those 
 gay exhibitions which are so attractive in the modern 
 part of Algiers, but in their stead we find old curiosity 
 shops, where every imaginable and unimagined article 
 that can be picked up between Tunis and Marocco is to 
 be seen : yatagans ; mekahlas ; Kabyle ornaments worn 
 by women ; dresses ; haiks; round Arab looking-glasses ; 
 fans , baskets worked with coloured cloth j Biskra straw 
 hats, of the form and height of a sugar-loaf, with a brim 
 as wide as a parasol; skins of wild animals ; ostrich eggs, 
 and the like. 
 
 To these succeed the shoe-makers, who sit on matted 
 floors, tailor fashion, stitching away at red and yellow 
 Marocco boots, shoes, and slippers. They appear to work 
 hard, but, like all Moors, they prefer short hours. For¬ 
 tunately the modern manoeuvre of strikes is unknown 
 here, or the Arabs would have to go about shoeless, and 
 Moorish ladies might want a finish to their charms. 
 We next see half-a-dozen Arabs embroidering that 
 indispensable part of the national costume the bur¬ 
 nous. These also sit on the floor, but not cross-legged, 
 for the great toe of one outstretched foot is brought into 
 requisition to hold the thread, which they always twist 
 round it to facilitate the operation. 
 
 It is unnecessary to say more of the shops, although 
 there is much to describe if we were to mention all that 
 is original and singular about them. They become 
 fewer as we ascend, till at last we find ourselves walking 
 between white Moorish buildings, whose little barred 
 loopholes give them the appearance of prisons, which in 
 fact they are. 
 
 Arrived at the most elevated point of the Arab 
 
ALGIERS. 
 
 9 
 
 quarter, we come to the Casbah, a famous old fortress 
 which crowns the heights. Looking down upon the 
 ancient town, the flat roofs of the houses seem to form 
 steps descending to the sea. From the Casbah the 
 view of the coast and over the surrounding country is 
 truly magnificent. 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 COUNTRY ABOUT ALGIERS. 
 
 Chi vuol veder quantunque puo Natura, 
 
 E’l Ciel tra noi, venga a mirar.— Petrarca. 
 
 Ferma un istante il frettoloso passo ; 
 
 E per po’ d’ora l’avide pupille 
 
 Su quest’ Ocean di portentosi oggetti 
 
 Che domini coll’ occhio manda intorno 
 
 A far di cio che miri amabil preda.—A lgaroti. 
 
 If the town is interesting, the country is yet more 
 attractive. 
 
 We have said that Algiers from the sea is unique and 
 striking, the heights behind the city forming an imposing 
 background. To extend the picture, it may be added, 
 that, the hills declining westward to a promontory on 
 the coast 3 and eastward to Cape Matifou, the panorama, 
 when seen from the deck of an approaching vessel, 
 appears to form a natural crescent—the symbol of the 
 religion of the people. 
 
 To the South, in shadowy distance, rise the Atlas 
 mountains, the snow-capped Djurjura crowning the range. 
 Extending to the foot of the hills, which stand before the 
 principal chain, the fertile plain of the Metidja stretches 
 east and west, the highlands of the Sahel being inter- 
 
COUNTRY ABOUT ALGIERS. 
 
 ii 
 
 posed between this open country and the sea. Below 
 these heights is the city of Algiers, the varied and charm¬ 
 ing scenery of the Sahel making the environs as remark¬ 
 able for their beauty as the capital is distinguished for its 
 picturesque situation. The general appearance of the 
 country is marked by undulating ground, gentle slopes, 
 bold declivities, abrupt precipices, verdant hills and 
 valleys, rivers, waterfalls, deep ravines, and all the acces¬ 
 sories which Nature brings together when she composes 
 her own picture. 
 
 The most remarkable feature is the magnificent and 
 novel vegetation. Trees and plants which are exotic 
 with us surprise and delight the eye; the tall and 
 graceful palm, the slender bamboo, the banana, orange, 
 lemon, eucaliptus, ficus, cypress, and the olive, grow in 
 the wild profusion of a tropical region. 
 
 The cactus and aloes, which enclose fields and border 
 the highroads, abound on every side. The former, whose 
 trunk is covered with bark, looks like a sturdy tree. The 
 edges of its large dish-shaped leaves are studded with a 
 fruit called Barbary figs, the tops of which are covered 
 by a yellow flower, following instead of preceding the 
 fruit, as it usually does. Of the aloes, which in Algeria 
 attains a prodigious size, a fact not generally known may 
 be mentioned. When it has arrived at maturity, which 
 in Italy, under favourable circumstances, requires twenty 
 to thirty years, and about half that time in Africa, a 
 strong stalk shoots up from the midst of its sword-like 
 leaves in a single summer to the height of six or seven 
 yards, after which it flowers and dies—the fate of many 
 a fair girl, whose life closes just as she bursts into woman¬ 
 hood ! 
 
12 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 What strikes those who come to Algiers for the first 
 time is the dark green vegetation. This ‘ vert sombre 1 
 is conspicuous throughout the three provinces, even in 
 winter. The flower-grown grass—which is spread like a 
 variegated carpet over the landscape wherever the in¬ 
 vading growth of trees allows patches of ground to be 
 
 seen is almost as deep in tint as the foliage of a Northern 
 wood. 
 
 The environs of Algiers are indeed beautiful ; ‘None 
 can paint like Nature, nor can a description do justice 
 to her colouring. 
 
 Characteristic of these rural scenes are the delightful 
 roads which turn and wind about them, making walks 
 and drives enchanting. There are many of the kind in 
 Europe—in England especially—but the trim hedges of 
 our pretty country lanes convey no idea of the same 
 hawthorn, honeysuckle, wild roses, shrubs, and creepers 
 left to nature, and growing to a size peculiar to the 
 vegetation of Africa. Here the hedges, flourishing under 
 the voluptuous sun of the South, rise high overhead ; 
 out of them grow aromatic lentisces, and large trees ; ivy, 
 honeysuckle, blue-bells, capucines, and similar flowery 
 climbers entwining themselves amongst their boughs*. * 
 fall in wreaths over the way, or, reaching from twig to 
 twig, hang in festoons along it; thus mingling with the 
 leaves of the trees, they seem to produce blue, red, or 
 yellow flowers—the colours of the aspiring parasites. 
 Nothing is more beautiful than the effect produced by 
 the caprices of these erratic flatterers, which rejoice the 
 eye and waft perfume across our path. So thick and 
 high are these hedges, that parts of the road before us 
 are often covered like a leafy bower, which changes to 
 
COUNTRY ABOUT ALGIERS. 
 
 13 
 
 open side-rows as we advance. The pleasure of a walk 
 is increased, by birds singing and warbling in the foliage 
 above us ; and not out of harmony are the Kabyles and 
 Arabs we occasionally meet, perched high on camels, or 
 riding lady-fashion on mules and asses—but looking 
 very unlike ladies! 
 
 Diverging from the highways are cross-country lanes, 
 like those in our own counties at home—only, as we 
 have already remarked, the charms of the Algerian bye- 
 paths, untouched by the hand of man, are of a wilder 
 kind. 
 
 Of a yet more primitive nature are the chemins A rabes ; 
 these are now so overgrown with brambles and every 
 species of strange vegetation, that it is sometimes scarcely 
 possible to penetrate the underwood, which like a 
 virgin forest obstructs the way. They were the bridle- 
 roads of the natives, before the French soldiers made 
 those which are equal to any in Europe. When it is 
 remembered that formerly not one of them existed, 
 their great extent throughout Algeria, the difficulties 
 which in an almost untrodden land—where the ground 
 was unequal, mountainous, and rocky—had to be over¬ 
 come, we cannot too much admire the work of the in¬ 
 telligent and laborious military of France ; and it is pleas¬ 
 ing to see men, whose ostensible business is to kill and 
 destroy, turn to what is useful and beneficial to society. 
 But we have loitered too long on these attractive roads 
 and paths, which intersect the country we have further 
 to describe. 
 
 Sometimes it presents the bold character of Swiss 
 scenery, from which a sudden turn opens upon a quiet 
 Devonshire-like landscape, but the stamp of African 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 14 
 
 vegetation is upon all. In every direction picturesque 
 ruins, standing on conspicuous sites, villas with gardens, 
 and Arab houses are dotted about, the white Moorish 
 architecture being set off by groups of dark-leafed orange, 
 lemon, and cypress trees, from the midst of which it rises 
 bright and shining in the sun. 
 
 Overhanging the brow of a hill or precipice we see 
 ridges of shelving red rocks, and on them clumps of 
 olives and cedars, prominent features which add to the 
 general effect. Red and green are in fact often opposed 
 in an Algerian landscape, and the artist who understands 
 contrast and harmony will know how to appreciate their 
 frequent occurrence. We may remark that, the colours 
 being here more decided, it is less difficult to represent 
 them on canvas. This is also the case in Italy ; but there 
 the country is disfigured by high stone walls, which are 
 everywhere built round private property, making it im¬ 
 possible to obtain an extensive view. In Algeria all is 
 open, as it is in England, fields and gardens being sepa¬ 
 rated by hedges, as they are with us. 
 
 The heights in the background of Algiers rising 
 amphitheatrically, the sea is almost always in sight as 
 we ascend ; at one time it is seen open and unimpeded * 
 by any object, at another glimpses of blue water are 
 caught through the foliage of the trees, like a streak of 
 ultramarine in a picture by one of the old masters. 
 These sea views, opening out as we rise, are amongst the 
 many attractions we owe to the diversified ground of the 
 Sahel. We do not know any town where there are so 
 many interesting places, and where the roads leading to 
 them are so delightful, as those near the Algerian 
 capital. 
 
COUNTRY ABOUT ALGIERS. 
 
 15 
 
 One of the number is Bouzareah, the highest place 
 above the city. The scene varies as we advance, like 
 the changes which succeed each other in a cosmorama, 
 for every turn opens to new and extensive prospects over 
 land and water. Below lies the rich and undulating 
 country we have been describing, its shady walks and 
 sombre groves marked on the landscape by dark green 
 lines and broad patches. Looking sea-ward, to the 
 right we see Cape Matifou, which points the horn of the 
 crescent-shaped coast. On this promontory are the 
 ruins of the ancient city of Rusgania. From Bouzareah 
 the view extends over the tongue of land which stretches 
 out into the sea, as it appears on a map, the shores and 
 cliffs beyond—towards Dellys—losing themselves in the 
 distance. In the opposite direction the coast-line is not 
 so well seen, owing to some intervening hills. Inland 
 across the beautiful plain of the Metidja, we see Blidah 
 at the foot of the lower range of the Atlas mountains. 
 
 Charming as are the environs of Algiers, the colonists 
 seldom visit places not on the highroad. Neither do 
 we in our cross-country rambles ever meet an English¬ 
 man in these pleasant lanes and bye-roads, so like those 
 in England, and yet so African. 
 
 We cannot help noticing the fact that comparatively 
 few persons appreciate and find great pleasure in the 
 charms of nature. We have remarked that peasants 
 born amidst grand mountain scenery, and artists who 
 copy and study it, love and delight in its attractions 
 more than people in general. Natural or acquired, a 
 taste which enables us to enjoy God’s beautiful creation 
 is a pure and unfailing source of happiness, one which 
 elevates the mind and addresses itself to the heart; no 
 
j6 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 pleasure is more innocent, none so durable. It has often 
 occurred to us that ministers of religion, who never, or 
 very rarely, allude to the subject, would do well— 
 instead of expatiating on particular points of faith or 
 doraia—sometimes to exhort their hearers to contem- 
 
 o 
 
 plate the works of the Almighty as they are displayed 
 in the grandeur and loveliness of nature. Thus called 
 upon to observe, they might in time learn to admire 
 what they at first looked at with indifference, and the 
 result would often be more edifying than a homily from 
 the pulpit. 
 
 As Mustapha is the pleasant place of residence of 
 almost all the English families who pass the winter in 
 Algiers, we shall say a few words about it. Mustapha 
 is an eminence which rises from a bay of the same name, 
 half an hour’s ride from the capital. The views of the 
 sea, the coast, and the range of the Atlas mountains are 
 very fine, but Algiers itself is not seen. 
 
 On this delectable spot, which seems to have been 
 duly appreciated at the time of the Algerian Regency, 
 is an assemblage of villas with gardens ; many are of 
 Moorish architecture—original or imitated—and a few 
 are in the European style, according to the fancy of the 
 builder or owner. The proprietors, in erecting new 
 houses, have shown a proper regard to British taste 
 and the unsociable habits of our countrymen, for Mus¬ 
 tapha is the only place in the neighbourhood of the 
 capital where high white walls, glaring in the sun, pen 
 up the enclosure as completely as the most exclusive son 
 of Albion can desire. 
 
 Notwithstanding its delightful climate, there is a 
 large class of English whom this beautiful country will 
 
COUNTRY ABOUT ALGIERS. 
 
 17 
 
 not suit. There are here few resources for those who 
 are used to pass their winters in Italian towns. 
 
 In Algiers there is no first-class theatre, no grand 
 opera, no good concerts, no public lectures, no picture- 
 galleries, as there are in Florence—no clubs, no libraries, 
 newspapers, or magazines—no English society for those 
 who desire a more extensive circle of acquaintance than 
 they can find at Mustapha, and who speak no language 
 besides their own well enough to enjoy the company of 
 foreigners, who do not care about shooting, and have no 
 more taste for the beauties of nature than they have for 
 Algerian cigars. Such, in short, as have few resources in 
 themselves will find none in Algeria. 
 
 The finest villa here is a Moorish palace, now the 
 residence of the Governor, as it was formerly the country- 
 house of the Dey of Algiers—the irritable prince who, in 
 a moment of ungovernable passion, struck the French 
 Consul—a fatal blow, for it cost the independence of the 
 country, and put an end to the soft delights of Hussein 
 Dey in his charming home at Mustapha. 
 
 We shall conclude this chapter on the environs of 
 Algiers, by taking the reader to the Jardin d'acclimata- 
 tion , a short drive from town. In this extensive plan¬ 
 tation numerous specimens of the Flora and other 
 marvellous productions of the far South have been 
 brought together. Avenues of the date-palm flourish 
 near alleys of plantanes ; long rows of bamboos, arching 
 overhead, form a natural gallery, so deep in shade as 
 almost to exclude the light of day ; bananas, with yellow 
 fruit hanging from their branches, cotton, date, and 
 coffee trees, sugar-canes, and many other species of 
 trees and plants from India and America, flower and 
 
 C 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 18 
 
 thrive in this enclosure . 4 In a word, all that is under 
 glass, and is kept alive by fire in the North, prospers in 
 this delightful garden through the natural heat of the 
 sun. Ostriches strut about the grounds; whilst the 
 swallows, which left Europe before us, again fly over our 
 heads. Sensible bird ! can man in a holiday season do 
 better than follow in the flight where instinct guides 
 thee? A week of the weather we now enjoy in Algiers 
 would bring out many of the trees and flowers in 
 England as nature revives them in spring, whilst a 
 single day of Northern cold would blight what is 
 blooming about us. A few hours make all the differ¬ 
 ence. It is said that there is not in the world so varied 
 and so complete a collection of the heterogeneous produc¬ 
 tion of the vegetable kingdom as that of which we are 
 speaking. 
 
 The temperature of Algeria being a medium between 
 that of the opposite shores of Europe and the more 
 Southern latitudes, from whence proceed most of the 
 plants and trees which are here brought together, they 
 grow and flourish on this neutral ground. 
 
19 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 I HE CIVILISATION OF ALGERIA COMPARED WITH THE 
 STATE OF TUNIS AND MAROCCO. 
 
 Look here upon this picture, and on this.— Shakespeare. 
 
 In Algeria the beauty of the country, where the soil 
 never tires of yielding its fruits, and the delightful 
 climate, are equally enjoyable. No other place unites 
 these privileges of the East with the benefits of civilisa¬ 
 tion ; where we meet with one, the other is absent. 
 
 In every town and village throughout these provinces 
 we find hotels and small inns. The roads, on which 
 diligences run in every direction, are second to none in 
 the world. A railway is open from Algiers to Oran, and 
 another is in course of construction between the capital 
 and Constantine. Telegraphs and post-offices are almost 
 everywhere. 
 
 The coast indentures, which served for roadsteads in 
 former days, have been converted into safe harbours. 
 Communication by steam and sailing vessels is estab¬ 
 lished to all parts of the globe ; and legitimate commerce, 
 whose advantages are shared alike by the natives and 
 the colonists, prospers in a port from which the only 
 expeditions undertaken were at one time those of law- 
 
 C 2 
 
20 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 less pirates, and the chief trade that of buying and 
 selling slaves. Above all, where barbarism and oppres¬ 
 sion reigned over the land, humanity and justice now 
 govern in their stead. In a word, the advancement and 
 intelligence of the nineteenth century have been intro¬ 
 duced into this part of uncivilised Africa. 
 
 The state of Algeria in the days of the Regency may 
 be inferred from the present condition of Tunis and 
 Marocco, the adjoining countries to the east and west. 
 A French writer , 5 speaking of Tunis ‘ as it is/ says : 
 ‘ The streets having no names, the houses no numbers, 
 and all parts of the town forming labyrinths, with ten 
 times as many blind alleys as there are thoroughfares, 
 great practice is necessary not to lose oneself in the 
 inextricable network, unless we are within a few yards 
 of the quarter most frequented by Europeans. If this is 
 the case by day, it may be conjectured how difficult it is 
 to find our way at night in the unlighted streets. A 
 traveller on first arriving must provide himself with a 
 guide, when he wishes to penetrate into the remote 
 arteries of the city.’ 
 
 To this description of the town we may add that, 
 whatever attractions the country possesses, they cannot 
 be seen without personal risk, for it is not safe to venture 
 alone outside the gates ; and for an excursion to a dis¬ 
 tance an escort is absolutely necessary, to protect the 
 traveller from brigands, who, when in sufficient numbers, 
 assault and plunder even the caravans. 
 
 The civilisation of our Western neighbours may be 
 imagined from the following specimen. The circum¬ 
 stance was related in the ‘ Gibraltar Guardian/ and the 
 account was afterwards copied into the Spanish news- 
 
THE CIVILISATION OF ALGERIA. 
 
 21 
 
 papers, from which we translate it back into its original 
 English, not having met with the journal in which it 
 first appeared. 
 
 ‘ To the south of the city of Marocco, the tribe of 
 the Beni-Mussa had always refused to acknowledge the 
 supremacy of the Emperors. The late Sultan Sidi 
 Mohamed, shortly before his death, succeeded in subdu¬ 
 ing them, and caused forty-eight of the prisoners, be¬ 
 longing to the vanquished tribe, to be decapitated, 
 sending their heads as a trophy of victory to Rabat, 
 accompanied by an imperative order that they should be 
 salted, and then exposed during three days on the gates 
 of the city, after which they were to be sent to Fez. 
 
 * The horrible present arrived at Rabat on the 26th of 
 October, 1872, and, in obedience to the command of his 
 majesty, the Jewish butchers were desired to perform 
 the operation. As it was their Sabbath, they refused to 
 obey the mandate. This was followed by threats, and 
 soon after the Pacha of Rabat, Sidi Abdelan el Susi, 
 ordered his soldiers to enter the houses of the Jews, and 
 drag them out by force, when they were beaten with 
 sticks, and obliged to salt the heads, which were then 
 exposed to public view,’ 
 
 Affairs have not improved under the new sultan, 
 whose ideas of clemency had been so highly extolled 
 before he came to the throne. The following—which is 
 not bad for a beginning—shows that Muly-Hassan, like 
 his predecessor, has a predilection for severed heads and 
 for the number eight. 
 
 When the insurrection of the Chaouia broke out, 
 some dignitaries of state suggested to his majesty, thst 
 before appealing to the sword, it would be merciful and 
 
22 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 prudent to try to induce the revolted tribe to lay down 
 their arms. 
 
 ‘ What/ exclaimed the sovereign in a rage, ‘ am I not 
 Sultan ?—If I am, I must be obeyed, and I shall punish 
 rebels whoever they may be ’—a hint to the Pachas for 
 their officious meddling. 
 
 Having been successful in suppressing the revolt, the 
 first thing he did after his victory was to order eighty- 
 eight heads to be struck off. 
 
 This barbarous custom of beheading prisoners taken 
 in battle continues to distinguish the opening of the 
 Emperor’s reign. 
 
 Amongst the more intelligent of the natives of 
 Algeria some, who remember the wretchedness and 
 degradation from which civilisation has relieved them, 
 mark the contrast which the despotism in the adjacent 
 states presents to the government of this colony, and 
 rejoice in the happiness they now enjoy. 
 
 Si Mohammed el Ai'd, a personage of distinction, 
 Superior of the Order of Tedjine, returning recently from 
 a pilgrimage to Mecca, chose the overland route, that he 
 might have an opportunity of observing the condition of 
 the countries through which he should travel. When he 
 arrived in his native Algeria, he was met by a party of 
 his countrymen who came to welcome his return. These 
 he addressed in an impressive speech, the first words 
 of which were : ‘ Under the rule of the Mussulmans 
 I have seen but injustice, oppression, and ignorance; 
 here only, amongst the French, do I find security for life 
 and equal justice for everyone.’ 
 
 This tribute to European enlightenment and humanity 
 is the more remarkable as coming from a Marabout, 
 
THE CIVILISATION OF ALGERIA. 
 
 23 
 
 Mahometan priests being in general—as we shall have 
 occasion to observe—the most intolerant and fanatical 
 of all the indigenous population. 
 
 Professor Blackie in his Imperial Gazetteer remarks 
 ‘that before the conquest in 1830 little more was known 
 of Algeria than of the rest of Africa/ Semi-civilised 
 nations, or their rulers, seem to be exclusive as a matter 
 of policy. Whatever be the reason, the want of inter¬ 
 course with the rest of the world has had the effect of 
 drawing the veil of prejudice over the eyes of the 
 Algerians so effectually that even now, after nearly half 
 a century of good government, and with the results of 
 civilisation before them, there are not many who are 
 willing to acknowledge that any improvement has taken 
 
 place. 
 
 Under the Regency, when property was confiscated 
 to satisfy the rapacity of the Pachas, when their myr¬ 
 midons—each in his degree—tyrannised over the whole 
 population \ in those days of venality and persecution, 
 badly as the people were treated whose religion was the 
 same as that of the Turks, their condition was a happy 
 one when compared with that of the Jews. Having 
 spoken of these good old times with many of the natives, 
 and having heard nothing but the song of praise, we one 
 day asked a Jew, who was old enough to remember the 
 kicks, stripes, and humiliations he had gone through, 
 what he thought of his emancipation ; but even the aged 
 Israelite’s national prejudice was stronger than his 
 gratitude, for he told us that he found no difference 
 between the past and present of Algeria. 
 
24 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 NATIVE INHABITANTS. 
 
 L’Arabe nomade est campe, dans une vaste plaine, 
 
 Autour de lui rien ne trouble le silence : 
 
 Sa maison est une piece d’etoffe tendue. — Vers Tun Marabout. 
 
 As man in his primeval dower array’d 
 The image of his glorious Sire display’d, 
 
 Even so, by Vestal Nature guarded, here 
 The traces of primeval man appear ; 
 
 The native dignity no forms debase, 
 
 The eye sublime, and surly lion grace.—W ordsworth. 
 
 In a work on Algeria some account of the native popu¬ 
 lation will not be out of place. 
 
 Arabs and Kabyles inhabiting the same country, 
 their dress not being very different, their religion almost 
 the same, and the disparity in their language and social 
 life not being at first remarked by strangers, they may 
 be supposed, by those who do not know their history, 
 and who have not had opportunities of observing their 
 manners and customs, to be one and the same people. 
 They are, however, two distinct races, having in reality 
 little in common with each other ; although both follow 
 the religion of Mahomet, they differ considerably on 
 many points of faith. 
 
NATIVE INHABITANTS. 
 
 2 5 
 
 Arabs who live in towns are called by the natives 
 ‘ m en of houses,’ to distinguish them from the ‘ men of 
 tents,’ dwellers on the Tell and in the Sahaia. These 
 are shepherds who, during winter, when rain causes 
 grass to spring up on those sandy plains, spi ead their 
 canvas where this temporary vegetation feeds their 
 flocks and herds. In summer they return to the Tell, 
 where the high table-lands supply excellent pasturage. 
 
 Some, who are less migratory, live in huts, 01 in 
 small villages spread over many parts of the country, 
 dedicating themselves to agriculture. These tribes are 
 dissimilar only so far as their respective modes of life 
 influence their characters. 
 
 Of the indigenous population residing in cities, it 
 may be remarked that the mixture of many elements 
 Arabs, Turks, Couloughisor Arab-Turks, and the Moors 
 properly so called—has resulted in the loss of individu¬ 
 ality and energy of character. This degeneracy, as far 
 as it relates to the Arabs, is, however, confined to those 
 on the littoral. 
 
 The Kabyles alone have undergone no change. 
 Settled at the foot of the Atlas during a period of 2,500 
 years, these rude Lybians, as the Romans called them, 
 have preserved the manly bearing of a people never 
 enervated by bondage or civilisation. Sallust described 
 them as ‘ a race of men who possess a robust and 
 healthy constitution, which can resist great fatigue, men 
 who succumb only to age, or when they perish under 
 the teeth of wild animals.’ Another writer of the same 
 period, speaking of the Kabyles, says: ‘ They sleep 
 on the bare ground, and at all seasons wear a simple 
 dress, a kind of tunic made of coarse woollen stuff, in 
 
26 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 which they envelop themselves ; ’ this description has 
 held good to the present day. 
 
 The Arabs of the desert called Bedouins, and those 
 who inhabit the high table-lands of the Tell, are models 
 of nomadic life. The Kabyle, on the contrary, loves 
 above all his domestic hearth, his hut, and his village. 
 An indefatigable labourer, he ploughs, sows, and gathers. 
 In winter he turns joiner, blacksmith &c., and he—the 
 ingenious artisan it is, who makes the yatagans, guns, 
 vases, trays, and many other articles which are sold in 
 the bazaars as Kabyle work. Summer and winter, in 
 
 bad weather and in good, his life is a scene of unremitt¬ 
 ing toil. 
 
 These Kabyles, or Berbers, are a warlike and valiant 
 people, who were not conquered by the Romans, or by 
 any succeeding invaders before the French, nor did the 
 tribes of the Djurjura submit to them till twenty-three 
 years after the conquest of the rest of Algeria. The 
 Kabyles have retained many customs which they de¬ 
 rived from the early Christians: their Sunday is the 
 same day as ouis, whereas Friday is the Sabbath of the 
 Arabs and Moors. The Kabyles take only one wife, 
 and treat her well, although Mahomet allows the hus¬ 
 band four legitimate wives at the same time. 
 
 Women married to Arabs of the lower class, those 
 on the littoral in particular, are made to do all the hard 
 work, whilst the husband passes his time as idly as he 
 possibly can ; these, and other differences in religion 
 and morals, are distinctions held to by the Kabyles 
 when Islamism was introduced into the country, and 
 they have retained them ever since. There appears, in 
 fact, to be only one point of identity between the 
 
NATIVE INHABITANIS. 
 
 27 
 
 Kabyles and the Arabs—the reciprocal hatred they 
 bear to each other, and the detestation in which they 
 both hold Christians and Jews. For the Moors, whom 
 the Kabyles regard as an effeminate and indolent race, 
 further degenerated by their town occupations, they 
 have a great contempt. These Kabyles are to be seen 
 in considerable numbers in the streets and squares of 
 Algiers, dressed in a simple burnous, often more re¬ 
 markable for the graceful folds of its drapery than for 
 its cleanliness. Many of them are good-looking men, 
 with fine countenances of the Berber type. The Arabs 
 are also tall sinewy fellows, with handsome intelligent 
 faces, brown complexions, expressive dark eyes, aquiline 
 noses, regular teeth, strong pointed beards, and black 
 
 hair, when it is allowed to grow. 
 
 The personal courage of the Kabyles and the Arabs 
 of the Tell and the Sahara is a fact never doubted even by 
 those who attribute to them more bad qualities than they 
 really possess. Monsieur Bechade, in his ‘ Chasse en 
 Algerie,’ remarks that ‘ this energetic side of the North 
 African character comes out in full relief when the Arabs 
 stand face to face with ferocious wild beasts, to whom 
 nature has given formidable arms and a savage disposi¬ 
 tion. The panther, whose claws are keener than the point 
 of a dagger, the lion, whose powerful jaw crushes a man’s 
 head in a second, have no terrors for them. If discipline 
 and civilisation have subjugated the Bedouins, they have 
 maintained their supremacy over the terrible denizens of 
 the forest.’ More might be said of the Arabs, but we 
 
 wish to avoid too much detail. 
 
 Very different in character and pursuits are the Moors, 
 called ‘ Hadars ’—men of houses—by the other natives. 
 
28 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 They are a mixed race, being descendants of the 
 various people who at different periods have invaded 
 or emigrated to these shores from the remotest times. 
 
 In 7II* when the Arabs, after vanquishing this part 
 of Africa, crossed over to Spain, many of the inhabitants 
 accompanied their conquerors to that country, and were 
 henceforth called Moors—from Mauritania—by the Euro- ’ 
 peans; driven out of Spain at the close of the fifteenth 
 century, they returned to Africa. 
 
 The Moors were the pirates whose exploits, depre¬ 
 dations, and presumption led at last to the invasion and 
 occupation of the country. In the present day the shops 
 and bazaars, in which we see so many tempting articles 
 from Algiers, Tunis, and Marocco, are kept principally 
 by them. Here, surrounded by their gay wares, they 
 sit apparently indifferent as to customeis, to whom how¬ 
 ever they are obsequious when it is their interest to be 
 so, but they can be unpolite and even insolent on occa¬ 
 sions, and are almost always insincere. The Moors of 
 Algiers are more strikingly dressed than any other class, 
 and may be called Oriental dandies. 
 
 Personally, mixture of many elements has affected 
 their physical appearance, for they have not the marked 
 and manly features which distinguish the Kabyles and 
 
 Arabs ; their eyes want that keen fiery look, the nose_ 
 
 which in the other two is aquiline and well defined_is 
 
 in them as varied m shape as it is amongst Europeans * 
 above all, the peculiar and expressive lips are not re¬ 
 markable in these degenerate sons of Ismael, who have 
 neither the personal pride nor dignity of character so 
 observable in the Berber and the Arab. Their coun¬ 
 tenance is usually pale, the face oval, and often fat; on 
 
NATIVE INHABITANTS. 
 
 29 
 
 the whole, with some exceptions, they have rather an 
 effeminate look: possessing no distinguishing type of 
 feature, the Moors might be taken for Europeans if, 
 instead of the most showy costume in Algeria, they were 
 dressed in our colourless clothes. 6 
 
30 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 NATIVE INHABITANTS—continued. 
 
 A pleasing land of drowsy head it was, 
 
 Of dreams that wave before the half-shut eye, 
 
 And of gay castles in the clouds that pass, 
 
 For ever flushing round a summer sky ; 
 
 But whate’er smacked of noyance or unrest 
 Was far, far off expell’d from this delicious nest. 
 
 Thomson’s Castle of Indolence. 
 
 A thousand hearts beat happily ; and when 
 Music arose with its voluptuous swell, 
 
 Soft eyes look’d love to eyes which spake again, 
 
 And all went merry as a marriage-bell ; 
 
 But hush ! hark ! a deep sound strikes like a rising knell ! 
 
 Childe Harold. 
 
 As Algeria was under the dominion of the Turks at 
 the time it was conquered, many of them remained after 
 it became a province of France. These are mostly well- 
 to-do portly gentlemen, who have villas and' harems in 
 the neighbourhood of the town. They are remarkably 
 clean in their persons, neat in their dress, and are easily 
 distinguished by their turbans. As we said in the last 
 chapter, the Moors, and we may add the Turks, are 
 more effeminate than the Kabyles, or the Arabs of the 
 Tell and the Sahara. 
 
NATIVE INHABITANTS. 
 
 31 
 
 Greater gain, even with more work, may have recon¬ 
 ciled some of the present generation—such as have heard 
 of the golden times of their ancestors only through the 
 recollections of their own parents—to the new state of 
 things ; but a do Ice far niente kind of existence is still an 
 Orientals conception of happiness. He delights to while 
 away hours, given up to ideal wanderings of fancy. In 
 his Castle of Indolence, placed amidst beautiful scenes of 
 nature, surrounded by flower-gardens, where sweet- 
 scented acacia and laurel perfume the air, and the waving 
 leaves of the graceful palm-tree form a bower to protect 
 him from the sun ; or near the sea-shore, where the mur¬ 
 muring billows lull him into a state of semi-beatitude, he 
 would pass days and years, indifferent to all that takes 
 place beyond the limits of his harem and terrestrial 
 paradise. In Algiers before the conquest, rich Turks 
 and indolent Arabs could enjoy such luxuries of the 
 imagination ; and, as a man is always happy when he 
 thinks himself so, who can assert that they were not ? 
 Character and temperament are the same in all classes ; 
 and, as the necessities of life could then be had for very 
 little, the poor also could smoke away time over a cup 
 of coffee which even now costs but one sou. 7 European 
 enterprise, an increased population, and commercial 
 activity, causing a rise in the price of provisions, these 
 results are regarded by the natives as the greatest evil 
 which the Christians have brought into Algeria. The 
 Arab, like the Spaniard, looks upon idleness as a kind of 
 philosophical indolence. He toils little himself, and is 
 satisfied if the labours of his family produce sufficient for 
 its subsistence. Well he knows that the fertile soil of 
 Algeria returns a hundredfold what has been confided 
 
32 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 to its bosom. He prefers his couscoussou, his moka, and 
 his paper cigar, to the comforts which are to be procured 
 by the sweat of his brow. Civilisation, with all its ad¬ 
 vantages, is to him a disturbing element, out of harmony 
 with Eastern notions of repose and true pleasure. When 
 an Arab speaks of the happy times that are gone for 
 ever, it is with an Oriental apostrophe to the invaders of 
 his country. 
 
 ‘Before the French came here—may God curse their 
 race —a fat ox was sold for twelve francs, a cow cost 
 nine francs, a calf was worth only a douro (a five-franc 
 piece) ; for one franc and thirty centimes we could buy 
 a couple of fowls, for ninety centimes a brace of par¬ 
 tridges, and a hare for less. A poor man could live for 
 forty-five centimes a day. For one sou and a half he 
 had half a pound of tobacco, and a loaf, like those of the 
 present day, cost one sou. Oranges, which are now so 
 dear, were formerly sold seven or eight for the same 
 money. At present we have to pay half a franc—five 
 pence—for twelve.’ These are not the only things he 
 regrets ; for, in those blissful days, however much he 
 might be oppressed by Deys and Pachas, he was allowed 
 to bully all who were weaker than himself, and could kick 
 a Jew or a Christian without being annoyed by European 
 notions of right and wrong. 
 
 We one day got into a discussion with an Arab on 
 the subject: he complained that he was not permitted to 
 take the law into his own hands, but must consent to 
 the slow and unsatisfactory process of having the merits 
 of a case submitted to a less expeditious tribunal than 
 his own strong arm. He was a stout powerful fellow, 
 who personally represented the right of might. We 
 
NATIVE INHABITANTS. 
 
 33 
 
 were in his castle overlooking the sea. ‘ What! ’ ex¬ 
 claimed our host indignantly ; * if a Jew—Allah confound 
 their breed—enter my dwelling and insult its master, 
 shall I not pitch the unbelieving dog over my wall, and 
 see the carcass of the infidel, who bearded a Mussulman 
 in his own house, carried away by the waves ? Do you 
 call this civilisation ! ’ A romantic story of those halcyon 
 days was told us by a native of Algiers, whose maternal 
 ancestor came from the land of the Christians. 
 
 On the heights near the city may still be seen the 
 ruins of a Moorish building, which was formerly the 
 castle or country-house of Barbarossa, 8 the pirate king 
 of this part of Algeria. At a later period it became the 
 habitation of the not less notorious corsair Dragut. 
 It must have been a fine mansion some centuries back, 
 for the arches and pillars still standing are in the pure 
 style of Arab architecture. Its position, high above the 
 sea, was evidently chosen for the view it commanded. 
 Perched on this lofty rock, like a vulture in its eyry, the 
 pirate chief could see any unfortunate bark which might 
 appear in the distance, if only as a speck on the horizon, 
 or which should venture nearer to the fatal coast. Then 
 was the order given to the chebeks, which lay in the 
 bay below, to spread their white sails and, like birds of 
 prey, swoop down upon the stranger. It is impossible 
 to think of these times without feeling shame and in¬ 
 dignation, not only at the recollection of the atrocities 
 committed by a barbarous people, but that the powerful 
 nations of Christian Europe should, during more than 
 three centuries, have submitted to see their countrymen 
 plundered and carried into captivity, and that they 
 should have further degraded themselves by paying 
 
 D 
 
34 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 tribute, in the shape of black mail, to exempt their ships 
 from pillage! It is not surprising that the Algerines 
 boasted they were the terror of Europe, nor can we 
 wonder that they felt contempt for us, who allowed the 
 Crescent to triumph over the Cross, till the French oblite¬ 
 rated this stain upon the honour of Christendom. These 
 pirates not only boarded ships at sea, but made descents 
 on the shores of Spain and Italy. 
 
 On the night of July 6, 1549, after most of the in¬ 
 habitants of Rapallo—a little town on the coast of the 
 Liguria—had retired to rest, lights were still seen 
 through the open windows of a house facing the sea. A 
 young couple had been married in the morning, and on 
 this festive occasion the family of the bride gave an enter¬ 
 tainment, which was the reason of the illumination. 
 About midnight, when music and the dance had made 
 young hearts beat with pleasure, the scene of rejoicing 
 was suddenly invaded by the apparition of a band of 
 armed men dressed in the costume of the East. They 
 were no heroes of a fancy ball, but savage, lawless 
 brigantiners. We shall not attempt to describe what a 
 contrast a single hour may bring forth. A painful 
 scene followed. Like the Roman ravishers when they 
 fell upon the Sabines, the freebooters first seized and 
 bore away the young and the beautiful ; but here no dis¬ 
 tinction of sex was made, both being good for slavery. 
 At the same time other gangs of turbaned pirates 
 entered all the principal houses in the place. The town, 
 taken by a coup de main, was sacked and pillaged; five 
 hundred of the inhabitants—the choice of its youth and 
 beauty—were hurried on board the Arab vessels, which 
 lay concealed by a point of land near Porto Fino. Those 
 
NATIVE INHABITANTS. 
 
 35 
 
 who have been at Rapallo must have remarked a 
 picturesque tower built in the sea, but united to the 
 shore by a drawbridge; this little fort was constructed 
 in consequence of the surprise in 1549, to defend Ra¬ 
 pallo from a like catastrophe in future. The captives 
 on the occasion we have spoken of were carried to 
 Algiers. The beautiful bride was purchased by an old 
 Turk, who afterwards married her. In the meantime 
 the first husband—who, having been wounded in de¬ 
 fending his wife, had been left for dead at Rapallo, and 
 who had, after his recovery, in vain sought to ascertain 
 her fate—was himself made prisoner when attempting 
 to land near Algiers, where he intended to pass for a 
 convert to Islamism, the better to forward his object of 
 trying to discover his lost love; but he was sold as a 
 slave, and remained some years without learning what 
 had become of the lady ; till one day a Christian rene¬ 
 gade told him all we have related—and more—for he in¬ 
 formed him that the Turk had died, leaving a son, whose 
 mother was the Christian girl stolen at Rapallo. Our 
 Italian was eventually ransomed by his family, and re¬ 
 united to his long-lost wife, with whom he returned to 
 Italy. The Mussulman who related the adventure to 
 us was a descendant of the old Turk and the Li¬ 
 gurian captive. His family heard nothing of his Chris¬ 
 tian ancestor after she had returned to Rapallo. 
 
 We could not help expressing our indignation at the 
 lawless conduct of the piratical crew, and commenting 
 generally on the exploits of the Algerines of that period. 
 
 Our Turk looked grave, stroked his beard, and after 
 a pause replied, that he presumed the perceptions of the 
 Mussulman must be more obtuse than those of the 
 
 D 2 
 
36 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 Christian, for he was unable to see the difference between 
 what his forefathers did in Europe or in Algeria, and the 
 morality of Christians, who at that time made a regular 
 traffic in slaves, landing on another part of the coast of 
 this same Africa, separating wives from their husbands, 
 children from their parents, carrying them off and selling 
 them to a servitude, where they were harder worked and 
 worse used than ever were the captives in Algiers. 
 
 No answer suggesting itself to the satirical remarks 
 of our turbaned friend, we remained silent. 
 
 It is not on principle only that the Arabs do not like 
 civilisation, they have no admiration even for what 
 they see of its beneficial results. Something must be 
 allowed for the stoicism of their disposition, and another 
 cause of their indifference may be that the changes have 
 been introduced by degrees, so that this semi-barbarous 
 people have become familiar with them little by little, 
 without the sudden contrast which excites surprise. 
 
 Whatever be the reason, it is certain that the Arabs 
 care little about the improvements in town or country. 
 The splendid roads, where there was not one throughout 
 the land, and of which they now gladly avail themselves, 
 the modern—and to them wonderful—inventions for 
 agriculture, never elicit one word of praise, or a look of 
 astonishment; above all, the elegance of the capital, the 
 railways, omnibuses, carriages, fine shops ; in short, all 
 that contributes to make life more agreeable, is looked 
 at from a nil admircindum point of view. 
 
 The Touaregs—a people of Berber race-inhabiting 
 the country beyond the Sahara, who sometimes come to 
 Algiers to see the marvels of the metropolis, are perhaps 
 the only tribes which have had the taste and sincerity to 
 
NATIVE INHABITANTS. 
 
 37 
 
 show pleasure at what they see, and to extol the advan¬ 
 tages European progress has introduced into Algeria. 
 These children of the desert stare with naive wonder at 
 all they see; and as they are too natural to be reserved, 
 they are as demonstrative in their delight as boys at a 
 fair. 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 CHARACTER OR THE NATIVE INHA RITA NTS. 
 
 Mislike me not for my complexion, 
 
 The shadow’d livery of the burnish’d sun, 
 
 To whom I am a neighbour and near bred. 
 
 Merchant of Venice. 
 
 -3cf) ton beffetv ato mein Siuf.—S chiller. 
 
 As there are good and bad people everywhere, it is 
 not easy to define the character of a whole nation. We 
 can only mark and describe the features which are most 
 prominent and striking in the disposition of its inhabi¬ 
 tants. 
 
 If it be difficult to arrive at a fair and unprejudiced 
 estimate of Europeans, even of those who are our neigh¬ 
 bours, differing little in manners, customs, and religion, 
 it is scarcely possible to judge impartially of Orientals 
 in a lower state of civilisation, whose habits, mode of 
 life, religion and language, are entirely different from our 
 own. 
 
 The grave Kabyle or Arab, enveloped in his burnous, 
 is to the stranger, who first sees him in Algeria, a being 
 whose bearing and classical style of dress call to mind 
 some antique statue he has seen draped in the flowing 
 robes of a former age. The thoughts and impressions 
 
CHARACTER OF THE NATIVE INHABITANTS. 39 
 
 of the Mussulman must always remain an impenetrable 
 mystery to the traveller, but he feels instinctively that 
 they are hostile to the Roumi. 
 
 We must not measure such men by our own stand¬ 
 ard. With foreigners—even with those who have lived 
 long in the country, and know something of their language 
 —the Arabs are more reserved than they are towards 
 each other. 
 
 We have remarked the following good and bad quali¬ 
 ties in this little civilised people. They are charitable 
 to the poor : it is true that this is a duty strongly incul¬ 
 cated by their religion; but to practise, and not to 
 neglect the injunction, shows a compassionate and hu¬ 
 mane disposition. Their manner one to another is kind 
 and even affectionate ; this is evident to those who ob¬ 
 serve them in the streets. When the fast of Rhamadan 
 is over, we see them congratulating and embracing each 
 other with every sign of earnest feeling. 
 
 Another good trait, which often shows itself, is grati¬ 
 tude. The Arab never forgets an act of kindness, par¬ 
 ticularly if it be done to his children ; it matters not 
 how trifling it may be—the present of a toy, or a cake— 
 it is not forgotten by the parent, even if the bestower of 
 the favour be a stranger and a Roumi. This means that 
 if, years after, he saw you attacked by man or lion, he 
 would risk his own life to save yours. 
 
 The regard paid to age is as evident as it is com¬ 
 mendable. Old persons are always treated with atten¬ 
 tion and deference. No sooner is an aged man seen 
 passing in the street, than the people press forward to 
 kiss his dress as a mark of respect, to which he replies, 
 < May Allah show thee favour V It is pleasing to witness 
 
40 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 these demonstrations of sympathy, which proceed from 
 a feeling heart. 
 
 Sobriety is a command in the Muslim religion, which 
 is enforced by the Prophet having forbidden the use of 
 spirituous drinks, an order in general strictly obeyed. 
 The few who in latter times do not always conform to it 
 are to be found chiefly amongst native soldiers, par¬ 
 ticularly some of the officers of Spai's in the PTench 
 service. 
 
 The Arabs are sober and abstemious, perhaps more 
 so then any other people in the world. Even the 
 lazzaroni in Naples who live on macaroni, and the 
 Italians of the same class in other parts of Italy who 
 dine on polenta, are bons vivants compared with the 
 Arabs, who eat their couscoussou once a day, and get 
 through the rest with a bit of bread, a few dates and a 
 cup of coffee. They do not require a quarter of the 
 food consumed by the people in the north of Europe. 
 
 These are the town Arabs. The Bedouins subsist on 
 much less ; a draught of camel’s milk and a handful of 
 meal are often all that they take during the day, par¬ 
 ticularly when travelling. 
 
 Hospitality, although generally practised amongst 
 themselves, is not so often extended to Europeans, 
 certainly not in time of war, as we shall see when we 
 come to speak of Palestro. If one of their own people, 
 poor or rich, enter an Arab tent or gourbi, he is sure to 
 be well received and invited to sit down to table as if he 
 were one of the family ; but neither the Arabs nor the 
 Kabyles eat with their guests, for this would be considered 
 unpolite. 
 
 The lower classes-—in particular the lowest class— 
 
CHARACTER OF THE NATIVE INHABITANTS. 41 
 
 of Kabyles and Arabs, the men who come ragged and 
 half-naked from the interior, are disgustingly dirty. 
 They are seen sitting and lounging about the streets, 
 leaning against walls, or lying in groups in the squares, 
 basking in the sun, where their want of cleanliness 
 affords them occupation enough. Fleas they consider 
 wicked insects which they have a right to kill, but to 
 the other —by far the more numerous—the innonnnati , 
 they are leniently disposed ; for they say that this vermin, 
 which gives them the most trouble, is an innocent little 
 thing, without malice or evil intention ! so they let it fall 
 gently to the ground for the benefit of the passing Roumi, 
 who is at first surprised and shocked, on returning home, 
 to find his or her spotless linen invaded by a specimen of 
 nature’s fecundity, present for inspection, of whose exist¬ 
 ence the stranger would before scarcely acknowledge to 
 have heard. 
 
 Omnibuses and railway carriages are set apart for 
 Arabs of this order, otherwise their proximity to colonists 
 travelling third class would be extremely undesirable. 
 
 The higher ranks or castes of Arabs and Turks are, 
 on the contrary, scrupulously clean. Nothing can exceed 
 the unsullied whiteness of their burnous and turbans, and 
 the neatness of the rest of their dress, or the great atten¬ 
 tion they pay to their persons. 
 
 The filthy habits and almost barbarous state of the 
 poorest Arabs do not prevent these panas of Algerian 
 society from being in general quieter, more polite, and 
 better behaved than are our roughs at home. Those, 
 however, who work on the quay, about the custom-house, 
 railway station, and above all the boatmen who row out 
 on the arrival of steamers to bring passengers on shore, 
 
42 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 acquire the worst defects of Europeans, whilst they 
 develope their own bad qualities. It is not possible to 
 meet with a more noisy, extortionate, and covetous set 
 than these Europeanised Arabs, who are the first speci¬ 
 men the newly-arrived traveller sees before he puts his 
 foot on shore. We shall not easily forget the bad im¬ 
 pression these wild men made on us when we first came 
 to Algiers. Our steamer had scarcely dropped anchor 
 when we were surrounded by boats filled with them. 
 An indescribable scene of confusion followed. Vocife¬ 
 rating in guttural Arabic and African French, a host 
 of strange-looking Ivabyles scrambled up the ladder. 
 Pushed back by the gendarmes, and pulled down by 
 other invaders who were trying to ascend, only a few 
 gained the deck. One of these, a long lanky fellow, 
 with baggy trousers a la turc about his loins, and his 
 gandoura—a sort of nominal shirt—looking in this 
 scanty plumage, with his shaven head, not unlike a 
 native ostrich, seized our hand-bags viva forza. We 
 thought the Berber would have carried us off with our 
 baggage, when a stout Nubian interposed his claim to 
 the prey. All were quarrelling and fighting about us, 
 whilst the row in the boats presented another phase of 
 Arab life at home. We never afterwards saw such a 
 turbulent set, for Orientals are in general quiet, grave, 
 and dignified. Like other nations in a comparatively 
 primitive state, we find people in the lower strata of the 
 indigenous population—those who like naughty children 
 know no better—inclined to steal. Under the govern¬ 
 ment of the Turks, robbery and plunder were the avoca¬ 
 tions of the Arabs of the Sahara, as it is in the present 
 day that of the brigands of Italy and Spain. The first- 
 
CHARACTER OF THE NATIVE INHABITANTS. 43 
 
 named marauders however—on the principle of honour 
 amongst rogues—considered it disgraceful to rob people 
 
 of their own, or a friendly tribe. 
 
 In ‘ Algeria as it is ’ we can travel unmolested from 
 the littoral to the oases in the desert; but the pilfering 
 propensities of town Arabs—who, when the French 
 arrived, were as inveterate thieves as Captain Cook found 
 the savages of the South Sea Islands remain the same 
 as before, only they are now restrained by the law. At 
 first nothing astonished them more than our sharply 
 defined notions of meuni and tuum, and the severity of 
 the punishment which followed an act of dishonesty. 
 
 Speaking of respect for the law, or fear of chastise¬ 
 ment, we may remark that cases of assault and robbery, 
 such as make the environs of some European capitals 
 unsafe after dark, are seldom heard of in the neighbour¬ 
 hood of Algiers. Whether this be owing to the inoffensive 
 disposition of the natives, or whether it is to be attributed 
 to the excellence of the police—partly Arab and partly 
 French—is not of so much importance as the fact itself. 
 As for thieving, it might be an interesting phrenological 
 question, whether this and lying are not natuial ten¬ 
 dencies in the human heart. In other words, whether 
 acquisitiveness and self-preservation, unchecked by the 
 influence of education and moral teaching, are not 
 instinctive in children and people in a primitive state. 
 
 Professional thieves of the European stamp> such as 
 the pick-pocket fraternity, do not exist among the Arabs. 
 
 The Algerines in general are honest, and many 
 make probity a point of honour, as well as of conscience, 
 being both too proud and too reasonable to overcharge 
 for what they sell: this is particularly the case with 
 
44 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 Arabs and Mussulmans. The Moors and Jews, like our 
 own shop-keepers, try to get as much as they can. 
 
 As we shall have to remark in the next chapter, the 
 Arabs do not treat their wives well, which is another 
 peculiarity of uncivilised life ; we may add that, like the 
 Spaniards—who seem to have taken both good and bad 
 from their African invaders—they ill-treat domestic 
 animals, particularly the poor ass. Even the patient 
 camel, when it finds the burden greater than it can bear, 
 utters a shrill, plaintive cry; and, as this useful help¬ 
 mate costs many duros and carries a heavy load, the 
 warning is not unheeded ; but the little ass, who has had 
 the misfortune to be born, and the greater bad luck to 
 be born in Africa, makes no sign, but submits like a 
 martyr to the ill-usage of the son of Adam till, worn out 
 by labour, many blows, and scanty food, his carcass is 
 at last thrown to the jackal, or to some other wild beast, 
 who has the good fortune to be of no service to man. 
 The race of asses, either degenerated through over-work 
 or some other cause, is here in Algeria—where both 
 animal and vegetable life is in general large and strong— 
 small and delicate. They do not appear to have dimi¬ 
 nished in quantity in like proportion, for droves of these 
 under-sized creatures, ridden by long Arabs with short 
 sticks, riders better able to carry the ass than it is to 
 carry them, are always trotting about the streets, 
 bearing, besides these lazy fellows, bags of sand or some 
 other heavy load. From morning to night they earn for 
 a hard master his daily bread, or rather his daily cous- 
 coussou. Each of these luckless donkeys has one 
 ensanguined spot near his tail, a red spot which never 
 heals, for it is constantly goaded with the stick ; on they 
 
CHARACTER OF THE NATIVE INHABITANTS. 45 
 
 trot and run, no one interfering, however many may 
 compassionate the poor ass. All this cruelty is practised 
 without the least excitement on the part of the brute 
 who rides and drives the beast. The Arab sits gravely 
 in his place, monotonously—probably unconscious of his 
 barbarity—dealing his blows on the loins of his dumb 
 victim, with as much indifference as if it were made of 
 wood, and had no more feeling than the man on its 
 back. 
 
 It would be well if a society, like that in England, 
 for the prevention of cruelty to animals, were introduced 
 into this colony ; one which, empowered by law, would 
 be consistent in its action, and would stay the horrors of 
 vivisection, horrors which are practised in the name of 
 humanity. If animals must be tortured for our good, 
 they ought to be the doctors and professors of anatomy, 
 who should be offered up at the shrine of science. To 
 dissect alive some of these philanthropists—whose orga¬ 
 nisations, being like that of their species—would produce 
 better results than cutting up living dogs and horses ! 
 
 Very different from the condition of the unfortunate 
 ass is that of the horse ; a precept and a promise of 
 Mahomet has secured for this beautiful quadruped a 
 privileged existence amongst Mussulmans. 
 
 ‘ Happiness in this world and in the next, remission 
 of sins, and the help of God, shall be the lot of him who 
 keeps and treats a horse well,’ says the Prophet 
 
 Whether this blessing was intended as an encourage¬ 
 ment and admonition to be merciful towards the brute 
 creation in general, or whether it was designed as a 
 special injunction in favour of the horse, the Arabs take 
 it literally and go no farther. 
 
4 6 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 ARAB WOMEN. 
 
 For man, to man so oft unjust, 
 
 Is always so to women.— Byron. 
 
 If Arab men are tall and spare, the women are in 
 general under the middle height. Many, from their 
 sedentary life, are inclined to stoutness. Before they 
 reach the ‘ mezzo del camin ’ they are often pretty, with 
 large soft eyes ; the face—rather pale from being much 
 under the cover of the adjar—is oval. As to figure, it 
 is not easy to form an opinion, for the loose hai'k or 
 burnous and ample trowsers conceal the form. 
 
 The dress of an Arab woman of the lower class is 
 more simple than elegant: it consists of a habaya—a 
 kind of linen chemise with wide sleeves—tied round the 
 waist with a cord, like the habit of a capuchin. In the 
 street all this is covered by a hai'k, which does not how¬ 
 ever hide her bare legs adorned with silver or copper 
 anklets. She wears large earrings which are almost 
 hidden under the mass of hair twisted about them, 
 whilst a profusion of necklaces, amulets, coral and glass 
 beads, fall over her tatooed neck and bosom. These 
 
ARAB WOMEN. 
 
 47 
 
 things belong to the wife personally, being settled on 
 her by a marriage stipulation in case of abandonment or 
 divorce. Thus she puts them on as often as possible, for 
 the display of such finery is one of the few pleasures she 
 enjoys, so the most is made of it. Sometimes she dyes 
 her hands, and always her nails, with the orange tint of 
 henna, and is fond of the scent called souak. She, like 
 her Moorish sisters, also attempts to improve upon nature 
 by blackening the lashes of her large eyes with koheul. 
 
 The adjar worn in Algiers and other large towns, 
 was unknown before the time of Mahomet, who intro¬ 
 duced it to serve his own personal jealousy ; thus the 
 distrustful disposition of one man has condemned all 
 Muslim women to pass through life with a kerchief over 
 the face. This law of the Prophet is one of many which 
 has contributed to degrade woman in her social position. 
 
 Whenever they—the young at least—can remove 
 the jalousie, which not only conceals their charms, but 
 prevents them from breathing the air of heaven freely, 
 they take it off; thus we often meet women unveiled in 
 the country, when no Arab is near. If they see one 
 approaching they immediately replace the veil, but they 
 are not equally particular when they meet a Roumi, so 
 that many opportunities of seeing their faces are offered, 
 even in the neighbourhood of Algiers and Oran. In the 
 Kabylie the adjar is not worn ; for the Kabyle—who 
 makes a companion of his wife, and treats her as his 
 equal—is not so suspicious as the Arab. 
 
 Young Arab and Moorish women, we may remark, 
 cover the face because they are ordered to do so ; the old 
 find it convenient policy, for, like charity, it hides many 
 defects. Thus old women are in general very strict in 
 
4 8 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 wearing the adjar themselves, and are as little indulgent 
 to young ones who are caught without it as the jealous 
 husband himself; the reason being envy in the one case 
 and mistrust in the other. 
 
 Some of the sex allow one eye only to be seen. 
 These, instead of the usual adjar, draw their drapery— 
 which covers them from head to foot—over the face, 
 leaving a little hole for the solitary optic to peep through. 
 We have often, in our rambles in the country about 
 Algiers, met with women thus muffled up—and still 
 more frequently in out-of-the-way places farther off, who 
 on noticing our apparent speculation on the countenance 
 which offered only one black eye to guide us in our con¬ 
 jectures, suddenly let the curtain fall, as they laughingly 
 showed us a face which had no cause to fear being ex¬ 
 posed ; this was done with a merry look which seemed 
 to say ‘ How do you like it ? does it please you ? ’ 
 
 In the same way we have seen girls in the Arab 
 quarter of Algiers, on arriving at their own homes, take 
 off the adjar on the threshold, to allow us a single glance, 
 as they closed the door on us, and on our curiosity. 
 
 We have found Arab women more amiable to us 
 Roumis than are Arab men. The great cause of dislike 
 to Christians on the part of the latter is—as we shall 
 have to remark in the chapter on religion—because we 
 do not acknowledge Mahomet to be the prophet of God. 
 This cause of aversion does not affect females in the 
 same degree. Being unable to read, they cannot be 
 supposed to know much of their Coran, and as their 
 fathers and husbands let them go out as little as possible, 
 they can scarcely be bigoted or intolerant ; neither do 
 
ARAB WOMEN. 
 
 49 
 
 they love their tyrant lords so much as to hate us solely 
 because their husbands do. 
 
 M. Achille Fillias, speaking of the condition of the 
 women, says : ‘ When an Arab woman marries, she is 
 
 sure only that she will be a slave ; but who can tell how 
 many domestic tortures—which no eye can see, and into 
 whose mysteries the law never ventures to penetrate— 
 she will have to endure. 
 
 ‘ When an Arab has got together a sufficient number 
 of duros to enable him to take a wife, he enquires in the 
 neighbourhood for a person likely to suit him. What is 
 wanted is not always the houri of his early dreams, one 
 whom his fancy had then adorned with all the fond illu¬ 
 sions of the heart. What he seeks is a woman to make 
 his bread and his burnous, one who can feed and dress 
 him. Having discovered what he requires, he goes to 
 the girl’s father, with whom the bargain is concluded. 
 After a discussion, during which the buyer depreciates 
 and the seller extols the qualities of the bride, the 
 wedding takes place.’ 
 
 Almost all marriages among the lower class of Arabs 
 are of the kind described. 
 
 In our country excursions we constantly see men 
 sitting in a circle before their gourbi, smoking, sipping 
 coffee, and lazily enjoying their ease without caring for 
 the labour which increases the pleasure of repose, whilst 
 in the fields around the women are hard at work, like 
 domestic animals toiling for their masters. 
 
 The wife always occupies an inferior position with 
 regard to her husband ; not permitted to eat at the same 
 time, she serves at table, and remains standing whilst he 
 enjoys what she has cooked. An Arab woman’s duties 
 
 E 
 
5o 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 include all that a slave has to perform for a master; not 
 only does she prepare his food and make his dress, but 
 she weaves the canvas which constructs his tent; thus 
 she is cook, tailor, and architect at the same time. 
 
 As a rule an Arab marries without having seen the 
 face of his bride. No doubt some find out by accident 
 whether it be pretty or ugly ; and they are occasionally 
 favoured by stratagem on the part of the woman 
 herself, for a girl, conscious of her own attractions, may 
 contrive to make an imprudence of her adjar responsible 
 for what was her own intention. If neither chance nor 
 design befriend them, they must be satisfied with the in¬ 
 formation given by their parents, who are always allowed 
 to see their future daughters-in-law. 
 
 Generally speaking, an Arab marries early. After 
 ill-treating his wife a few years he usually sends her 
 adrift, and takes another, whose condition is no better 
 than was that of the one he repudiated. Divorce is very 
 common, for it is known statistically that there are nearly 
 as many separations as there are marriages. Marriages 
 with Mussulmans is rather a civil than a religious 
 ceremony, the couple being united in presence of the 
 cadi or mayor. Some of the more intelligent and less 
 bigoted Arabs, who have observed how much better is 
 the social position of the wife amongst the civilised 
 classes of Europeans, have their daughters married 
 according to the French law. A marriage thus con¬ 
 tracted is ever afterwards under the jurisdiction of France. 
 If these examples were more frequent, the improved 
 condition of Arab women would be the result. But, as 
 instructing the lower orders is the first step towards 
 civilising them, nothing would so soon, and so effectually 
 
ARAB WOMEN. 
 
 5i 
 
 remedy the evil as the introduction of compulsory 
 education. 
 
 The wives of Arab chiefs, and of rich Arabs in general, 
 if they enjoy immunity from labour, have even less 
 liberty than their sisters in humble life. The demon of 
 ennui is ever present to these secluded ladies, who are 
 taught to believe that it is a crime to allow their faces 
 to be seen except by their husbands and nearest relations. 
 The adjar is not worn in the house ; but, if a visitor 
 calls, the female part of the family scampers off into the 
 inner apartments. Their only occupation is to paint 
 themselves, dress fine, look in the mirror, cover their 
 persons with jewellery, and pass much time in the bath. 
 Friday, the Arab Sunday, is almost the only day in 
 which an Arab woman of quality leaves her dwelling. 
 She then—accompanied by her female attendants—goes 
 to visit the cemetery, where, shrouded in a cloud of white 
 drapery, many of them seen together look like phantoms 
 wandering about the tombstones. 
 
 Such being the condition of Arab females of each 
 class, it is not surprising that when they compare it with 
 the liberty and good treatment enjoyed by Europeans— 
 and which with the quicksightedness of their sex they 
 do not fail to perceive—they acquire a keener sense of 
 their own degradation. They know besides that in 
 Algeria itself, their sisters in the Kabylie share the same 
 freedom as the unveiled Europeans. 
 
 How then should Arab wives—who see other women 
 happy in the society of their husbands—not feel that 
 they owe little respect and less love to their masters, who 
 cast them off at any time, according to their caprice ? 
 
 This contrast in the social state of European, as 
 
52 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 compared with that of Arab and Moorish women, is not 
 less apparent to the men ; and the example we set before 
 their wives and daughters is not the least amongst the 
 many causes of the ill-will they bear us. 
 
 Those who do not know the Arab character can 
 form no conception of their reserve and jealousy in regard 
 to their women. 
 
 Although it is polite in speaking to the head of a 
 family to enquire with almost affectionate interest after 
 his male relations, on no account must the wife or the 
 other females be mentioned ; any allusion to them w'ould 
 be considered as an offence, or even an insult. 
 
 In contrast to this dark picture of the condition of an 
 Arab woman, particularly the married companion of one 
 of the lower class—we cannot say of a working man—is 
 the comparatively happy domestic life of a Kabyle wife ; 
 no rival shares her husband’s heart, she is his wife in the 
 best sense of the word. Treated with affection and 
 respect, she takes her meals with the family, and is pre¬ 
 sent even when there are guests in the house. In 
 summer when her household duties permit, she assists 
 her husband in his work, taking part with him in the 
 labours of the field. During winter her principal occupa¬ 
 tion is making hai'ks and burnous. 
 
 The Kabyle women are handsomer than either the 
 Arab or Moorish females. Enjoying more liberty than 
 these, they like to show themselves in public, and are 
 especially fond of fetes, music, singing, and dancing. 
 
 Moorish women, domestically speaking, occupy a 
 middle degree between the Arab and the Kabyle. With 
 less personal freedom than the latter, they are exempt 
 from ill-treatment, and have less hard work than the 
 
ARAB WOMEN. 
 
 53 
 
 former. They seldom leave the house ; never during 
 the year after marriage, which is by no means a succes¬ 
 sion of honeymoons. When it is necessary for them to 
 go out on some errand, a servant or duena always 
 accompanies them. Precocious marriages, seclusion, and 
 sedentary habits affect their good looks, so that they 
 are seldom pretty when they have passed their twentieth 
 
 year. 
 
 A Moorish woman at home, en neglige.\ is rather 
 primitively dressed ; but she puts on a very elegant 
 costume when she makes a more elaborate toilet, although 
 she knows that nobody will see it but her husband, her 
 
 nearest relations, and the servants. 
 
 A coloured jacket embroidered with gold or silver is 
 worn over a white muslin chemisette. A pair of wide 
 cashmere trowsers of blue, yellow, or green colour, beau¬ 
 tifully worked, meet the vest at the waist, where a 
 handsome silken sash or girdle is folded lound them. 
 Sometimes a scarf or other drapery fastened in front, is 
 made to fall gracefully over the lower part of the person 
 behind, forming a train on the floor, leaving however one 
 leg—adorned with a massive silver anklet uncovered, 
 whilst the points of the feet are tipped with tiny Marocco 
 
 slippers. 
 
 The ornaments worn by Moorish women are remark¬ 
 able rather for singularity than for good taste ; their 
 passion for trinketry exceeds even that of Arab females 
 for this kind of personal decoration ; or perhaps it 
 appears so because a greater number of the former have 
 the means to indulge in it; but the stock of gewgaws in 
 the husbands’ bazaars would soon be exhausted if they 
 were disposed to gratify their wives in all they desire to 
 
54 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 possess. Half-a-dozen bracelets on each arm are the 
 fewest they wear, whilst the rich deck themselves with 
 pearls, diamonds, and precious stones. 
 
 We have once or twice seen some emancipated ladies, 
 who had thrown aside the adjar and freed themselves 
 from social restrictions, taking a carriage drive ; and 
 as we have been permitted to see their faces and gala- 
 costume at the same time, they may serve for models in 
 regard to dress, but not for morals, in a general de¬ 
 scription, as well as those we should see if we were allowed 
 to penetrate the domestic mysteries of a Moorish family . 9 
 Such as cannot afford an expensive pcirure, cover, if they 
 do not adorn, their persons with all procurable pieces 
 of old or even modern coins—gold or silver—which 
 fall in long necklaces, as low as the waist. Amonsrst 
 
 o 
 
 Turkish money we have seen the effigies of Queen 
 Victoria and his Holiness the Pope. The jingle made 
 at every movement by these bits of metal is music to 
 the ear of a Moorish lady. 
 
 Dyes and perfumes, which are the delight of all 
 women of the East, are in especial favour with the ladies 
 of Algeria. Moorish women in particular, not content 
 with trying to deepen the colour of the darkest of black 
 eyebrows, are dissatisfied that they do not extend and 
 meet in an uninterrupted line across the forehead ; a 
 mistake of nature they correct by the aid of art. 
 
 Those who have not been in the land of the Arabs 
 may form a very tolerable idea of the women in the 
 streets, if they figure to themselves some ambulating 
 sacks made of calico, with two holes cut near the top for 
 
 eyes to look through, whilst at the bottom two shoes 
 
 # 
 
ARAB WOMEN\ 
 
 55 
 
 appear, indicating that there lies the propelling power 
 
 which moves the bags above them ! 
 
 In strong relief to these shapeless, muffled-up figures, 
 are the tall native Jewesses, with their faces and arms 
 uncovered. When young they are often handsome, 
 although their regular features even then want expres¬ 
 sion and character. In their attire they are fond of gay 
 colours, in preference green silk embroidered with gold. 
 Ther costume bears a great similarity to the engravings 
 in an illustrated bible. This resemblance is particularly 
 striking in those we see at fountains, where the antique 
 form of their jugs, their naked feet in sandals, and long, 
 
 close-fitting dress complete the picture. 
 
 To return to Moorish women. As they very seldom 
 —with the exception of the lower classes—go out of the 
 house, and then, as we have said, only to make some 
 indispensable purchases, it is not surprising that t ey 
 are scarcely ever seen with their husbands. We have 
 met with only one instance, which we may mention or 
 
 the rarity of the occurrence. 
 
 We were going to a place in the neighbourhood ot 
 
 Algiers, when, besides ourselves, there happened to be 
 only a young woman and her husband in the coac 1 . 
 She was very lively, and seemed disposed to enjoy her¬ 
 self—that is, as much as a daughter of Eve whose charms 
 are concealed from sight, and for whom half the pleasure 
 
 is lost, can enjoy herself. 
 
 She took care that her hai'k should not altogether 
 hide the richness of her dress. 01 couise we cou see 
 only her eyes, but if the other features were as beautiful, 
 she must have been one of the prettiest gu s we lave 
 seen. The man could speak French—Arab women sel- 
 
56 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 dom can. We told him that, after all, they could not 
 keep the best part of the face from us Roumis. He 
 translated what we said, at which she laughed under her 
 adjar, and then contrived, in pretending to adjust her 
 drapery, to afford us glimpses of her small well-turned 
 head, with its black hair interwoven with coloured silk 
 and rich pearls; a coquetry which seemed to surprise 
 more than to please her lord. When we left the ’bus 
 she said ‘ ta ta ’ to us in Arabic. 
 
 There are no Arab artists, or very few ; if such a 
 vara avis has accidentally acquired some knowledge of 
 drawing and painting, his attempts are confined to land¬ 
 scape, which, painted without figures—it being con¬ 
 trary to Mahometan law to represent living creatures, 
 especially man—has a deserted look. This prohibition— 
 which has perhaps been suggested by a mistaken con¬ 
 ception of the second commandment: ‘ Thou shalt not 
 make unto thee any graven image, or the likeness of 
 anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth 
 beneath, or that is in the water under the earth,’—is not 
 always observed in regard to inferior animals ; thus we 
 see, cut on Arab trays, ostriches and camels twice as 
 large as the trees near them, reminding us of the 
 Chinese patterns on our dinner plates. Their marine 
 pictures, with ships and boats without sailors, appear as 
 if the vessels had been abandoned at sea. 
 
 If it be difficult for a painter to find a man to paint, 
 it is almost impossible to meet with a woman. 
 
 Accident however threw in our way an exception to 
 the rule, and we shall close these remarks on the women 
 of Algeria by introducing our model to the reader, for 
 she was of a class differing from those we have spoken 
 
ARAB WOMEN. 
 
 57 
 
 of. The one mentioned before may be called a town 
 Moor. Coquettishly dressed and adorned with orna¬ 
 ments, she was as unlike the latter as a fine lady in 
 Europe is to a poor peasant girl. In that republican 
 conveyance, the omnibus, we have met with these differ¬ 
 ent but characteristic types. On the last occasion we 
 we were returning from a country excursion, when a 
 young woman, belonging to one of the wandering tribes, 
 who lead a gipsy kind of life in the mountain districts 
 <r 0 t into the Belle Africaine. She well represented the 
 order to which she appertained. Enveloped in the haik, 
 
 _her face concealed in the usual way and wearing 
 
 loose linen trowsers, we at first saw nothing to distinguish 
 her from the ‘ women in white ’ we meet in the streets , 
 but this girl was a Bedouin. Accustomed to the freedom 
 of the tent and a country life, these people^ cover the 
 face only when they come to large towns— 1 oil il y a de 
 la gene, il liy a fas deplaisiri She had no sooner sat 
 down, and noticed that no Arab was present, than she 
 threw back her haik and removed her adjar. Never had 
 we seen jet black hair set off a face so wildly beautiful. 
 If we were writing in her own figurative language, we 
 should compare the apparition of this admirable coun¬ 
 tenance to the sun emerging from a cloud ! She was 
 the first unveiled African girl we had seen, at least the 
 
 first that gave us time to see her well. 
 
 Often had we wondered whether beauty or ug mess 
 was hidden under the jealous adjar. At last we had 
 before us a reality better than all our speculations had 
 suggested—life, colour, a picturesque dress, and a beautifu 
 woman. A red and yellow kerchief was entwined m 
 broad folds with her raven hair. Under well-defined 
 
58 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 brows, which blended softly with the skin—for they were 
 untouched by art—her large eyes had the tender ex¬ 
 pression so remarkable in the women of the East When 
 she looked down, we were reminded of the Madonnas 
 the old masters loved to paint in this modest attitude. 
 Looking up, her whole face seemed lighted by the smile 
 which is so well answered by the eye. A profusion of 
 black hair, falling in dishevelled tresses over her half- 
 naked bosom, rested in masses on her white drapery. 
 Her featuies, of the Arab type, were not too strongly 
 characteristic of the race, and her complexion, which was 
 not darker than a Southern European’s, was of that 
 warm peachy tint which artists try to imitate. A strip 
 of red tape lound her shoulder caught up her dress on 
 one side, her faultless bust being uncovered on the other. 
 The requirements of an infant at her breast was partly 
 
 the cause of this simple attire—or rather the want of it_ 
 
 in the mother ; but, incompletely as this child of nature 
 was robed, she was scarcely more nude than is a fashion¬ 
 able lady in civilised society, at a ball, concert, or theatre, 
 where she displays charms — not always young—which 
 would lose nothing if left to the imagination. 
 
 Flowers bloom early in this luxuriant clime. Al¬ 
 though married and a mother, this pretty creature who, 
 with her child, formed a group and a picture, was not 
 fifteen. It was a picture we longed to paint, for we could 
 take back with us nothing more charmingly characteristic 
 of this part of Africa. 
 
 We have forgotten to say that her neck was tatooed 
 in many circular lines of fantastic design, which looked 
 like several rows of a blue necklace. She had also a 
 
ARAB WOMEN. 
 
 59 
 
 little tatooed spot on her forehead, counterpoised by a 
 
 corresponding one on her chin. 
 
 On approaching town she again covered her face. 
 In what Arabic we were master of, we pioposed to 
 paint her portrait, for these wild tribes know little and 
 care nothing about the Prophet’s interdiction, or the pre¬ 
 judices of his followers. Our fear was that the husband 
 might stand in the way, for no Arab would permit his 
 wife to go alone to another person’s dwelling, least of all 
 to that of a Christian. 
 
 She however consented to our proposal, and offered 
 to accompany us. We liked this better than to trust to 
 her word, for a promise is as often broken in the East 
 as it is in the West ; so we took her with us. 
 
 Arrived at our house, we asked what her husband 
 would say if he knew. In reply she pointed to the 
 ground—a mute but eloquent answer—by which we 
 understood that Fatima’s master was gone to the 
 world where other houris wait to console the true 
 believers for the loss of those they leave on earth. 
 
 * So,’ said the young widow, seeing that we had com¬ 
 prehended her meaning, ‘ he cannot prevent me from 
 having my likeness taken. 
 
 She afterwards came regularly ; and, as she was in¬ 
 telligent, and sat well, we finished two satisfactory 
 pictures from our beautiful Bedouin model, which are 
 amongst the most interesting in our collection of 
 travelling sketches. 
 
6o 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 THE JEWS. 
 
 Shylock. I will buy with you, sell with you, talk with you, walk with 
 
 you; but I will not eat with you, drink with you, nor pray with you_• 
 
 Shakespeare. 
 
 Of all the natives of Algeria the Jews have the greatest 
 reason to rejoice at the new state of things 
 
 b * 
 
 Obliged, formerly, to live in a separate quarter, they 
 were despised and treated with every indignity ; no pro¬ 
 tection for property or even life was extended to them. 
 When the Deys wanted money the resources of the un¬ 
 fortunate sons of Israel were applied to ; and, under one 
 pretext or another, their goods and chattels were sold to 
 
 replenish the empty coffers of his Highness the reigning 
 Pacha. 
 
 Before the conquest the Jews wore a black chechia 
 below the turban, as a sign of inferiority, whilst the 
 Arabs sported a red one. 
 
 Some idea of the degraded condition of this people, 
 when under the Regency, may be formed from the fact 
 that, if an Arab, setting out on a journey, met a Jew, 
 it was considered a bad omen, unless the presage was 
 averted by the latter being made to approach barefoot, 
 
THE JEWS. 
 
 61 
 
 carrying his shoes in his hand, and passing the Maho¬ 
 metan in the humble attitude which befitted a man 
 of his inferior caste. Nothing has more astonished and 
 disgusted the Arabs than the footing of equality on 
 which this despised race has been placed by the 
 Christians. 
 
 Such was the state of the Jews before 1830 ; and it 
 is only doing them justice to say that they are grateful 
 to the French Government for their emancipation. A 
 striking example of this was given on the introduction of 
 the conscription into the colony in 1873. Instead of 
 looking on this as a calamity, and showing discontent, 
 as the Sicilians and others have done in Italy, the 
 Israelites of Algeria received the announcement with 
 enthusiasm ; and testified their satisfaction that they 
 were thought worthy of being enrolled amongst the mili¬ 
 tary of France. 
 
 The well-known physiognomy of the Hebrews is not 
 generally so marked here as it is in their brethren in 
 Europe ; the nose is not so prominent, and the other 
 features are also less disagreeably suggestive of the 
 moral propensities attributed to them. 
 
 Like Jews all the world over, those of Algeria are in¬ 
 dustrious, enterprising, and intelligent; they are fond of 
 money, but are often satisfied with small profits, to the 
 great disgust of the other traders, whom they sometimes 
 find it good policy to undersell. 
 
 Freed from the tyranny of their former oppressors, 
 and protected by a just government, the children of 
 Israel now go on their way rejoicing. 
 
 Notwithstanding our favourable notice of this peculiar 
 people, it must be confessed that, like all emancipated 
 
62 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 races, some are presumptuous ; this disposition, which is 
 the unfavourable side of the Jewish character, occasion¬ 
 ally showing itself here, as it does much oftener in 
 Europe, where the extremes of poverty and wealth are 
 more frequently met with. 
 
 Their costume is handsome, not unlike that of the 
 Greeks ; but many of them have adopted the Frank 
 dress which, though less elegant and dignified, is certainly 
 more convenient. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 THE BLACKS. 
 
 Fleecy locks and black complexion 
 Cannot forfeit nature’s claim ; 
 
 Skins may differ, but affection 
 
 Dwells in white and black the same. — Cowper. 
 
 The Blacks of Algeria, about four thousand in number, 
 are not negroes, properly so called. The greater part 
 come from places not far beyond the Sahara, whereas 
 the negro physiognomy is not met with to the north of 
 Soudan. 
 
 Those we see in Algiers have oval faces, and their 
 complexion is many shades removed from black ; their 
 style of countenance is not unlike that of the natives of 
 British India, whom they also resemble in their light gay 
 attire. They are the happiest people we have seen, 
 always in good humour, they are the soul of every festive 
 occasion, giving animation to Arab fetes which, without 
 their tambourins, fiddles, and their jovial temperament, 
 would be dull entertainments. They are fond of music 
 a very primitive kind certainly—and delight in dancing 
 and singing. In the cafes we see them forming a little 
 orchestra at one end, whilst Arabs and other natives sit 
 
64 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 or recline on benches before them. But it is during the 
 three days of the little fete called Aid-es-Srir, which 
 follows the fast of Rhamadan, that their services are 
 most called into requisition. No sooner is the month 
 of penitence over than groups of these darkies may be 
 seen in the squares and streets, dressed in fantastic 
 costumes, with all sorts of musical—or rather unmusical 
 
 instruments, drums, tamtams, castanets, karakobs, 
 and the like, to which they dance a species of fan¬ 
 dango, singing and shouting the whole time like wild 
 Indians. 
 
 The Mahometans are satisfied with three days of 
 rejoicing after their abstinence, whilst in Catholic coun¬ 
 tries ten times that duration of masquerading is thought 
 necessary, as a preparation for the privations of Lent. 
 Nothing seems to astonish and shock the grave Orientals 
 more than the tomfoolery they witness during the Chris¬ 
 tian carnival. 
 
 Before the conquest the Blacks were slaves, and, like 
 the Jews, they were despised and ill-treated; but these 
 kind-hearted people have now conciliated the good-will 
 of their former masters, which is not the case with the 
 Jews, who are, if possible, more hated than ever, on 
 account of the protection they enjoy in common with the 
 other subjects of France. 
 
 No greater contrast can be imagined than that of the 
 honest, shining faces of these Blacks, near the grave, 
 taciturn, and dignified Arabs. Being themselves strangers 
 like the Europeans, and indebted to them for their 
 emancipation, they are well pleased to see the French in 
 Algeria. The Blacks, laborious and frugal, are dis- 
 
THE BLACICS. 
 
 65 
 
 tinguished above all the other natives for their scrupulous 
 probity and the regularity of their lives. 
 
 Some black women wear the adjar, particularly the 
 young ones, for their husbands are often as jealous of 
 their sooty charms as Othello was of the fair face of 
 Desdemona. 
 
 There is however an order of these women which 
 approaches nearer to the Negro type, for they came 
 originally from the land of thick lips and flat noses; 
 these do not cover the face, which is very ugly. Their 
 avocation is to sell bread and cakes to the Arabs. 
 
 As a sequel to this short chapter on the Blacks of 
 Algeria, we may relate a little incident which took place 
 before our house. 
 
 One day as we were going out, we heard a black 
 woman suddenly utter a wild scream, as she caught a 
 little girl of about eight or ten years of age in her arms, 
 and pressed it frantically to her bosom, whilst she almost 
 smothered it with kisses; now crying, laughing, and 
 dancing with joy, at one moment she let the child free 
 from her embrace, holding it from her to look at its face 
 through her tears, then kissing it again and again, she 
 placed its little head on her heart. 
 
 Such a scene in the street brought a crowd round 
 the woman and child. We learned from one of the 
 spectators that the former lived at some distance from 
 Algiers, and that the little girl, who was her daughter, 
 having fallen ill, had been taken to an hospital in town, 
 an institution of which the mother had vague and very 
 unfavourable conceptions. Seeing and hearing nothing 
 of her child for some time, the poor woman had at last 
 come to mourn it as dead, when, on the very day the 
 
 F 
 
66 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 girl left the hospital to return home—cured and looking 
 more blooming and healthy than ever—the mother 
 and daughter met unexpectedly as we saw them. 
 
 A mother’s love is indeed the admirable instinct of 
 her nature. Her heart is always the same, under what¬ 
 ever form it beats, and whatever be the colour of the 
 skin that covers it. 
 
67 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 RELIGION. 
 
 Let not this weak, unknowing hand 
 Presume Thy bolts to throw, 
 
 And deal damnation round the land 
 On each I judge Thy foe.— Pope. 
 
 Non enim in sempiternum litigabo neque usque ad finem irascar : quia 
 spiritus a facie mea egredietur, et flatus ego faciam .—Prophetia Isaiae, cap. 
 Ivii. 16 . Biblia sacra Vulgal 0 
 
 IT HAS been well remarked that ‘insurrections in 
 Algeria break out unexpectedly, like the sudden rising 
 of a storm on a summers day. The chiefs of such re¬ 
 volts are almost invariably the Marabouts, who aie 
 assisted by the most fanatical and excitable members of 
 the religious communities known under the name of 
 Kouans—brethren. These insurrections are got up 
 oftener in the name of religion than in that of liberty. 
 The indigenous population is easily reconciled to French 
 supremacy, for the fatalism of the East renders foreign 
 dominion less insupportable than is generally imagined. 
 Believing it to be written in the Book of Fate, they 
 piously resign themselves to whatever may happen. 
 What they hate in their European masters is, that they 
 
 F 2 
 
68 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 do not acknowledge the Prophet—it is not the conqueror, 
 but the Christian they detest.’ 11 
 
 We may add, in confirmation of the preceding ob¬ 
 servations, that the same aversion was not shown to the 
 oppressive government of the Turks, who, if they were 
 not Algerines, were at least Mahometans. 
 
 On what an uncertain event may not the religion of 
 a people depend. Success or disaster in war, the valour 
 and discipline of an army, a happy manoeuvre in the 
 field, may gain or lose a battle on the issue of which 
 rests the future belief of a nation ; nay, the courage and 
 conduct of a single man may be the cause of defeat or 
 of victory. The scimitar of Abderaman would have 
 established a new religion if the sword of a Martel had 
 not arrested the advancement of a false creed. Already 
 had the first successors of the Prophet obliged those 
 they conquered to embrace their religion: and it is 
 strange to reflect that the descendants of these Chris¬ 
 tians, who had become Mahometans by force and not 
 from conviction, are now as sincere and zealous believers 
 in Islamism as are the most fanatical amongst those 
 who hate the name of Nazarene. If one of the effemi¬ 
 nate Merovingian kings of the eighth century had directed 
 the arms of PTance instead of the warlike Charles Martel, 
 the Saracens, who had already conquered parts of Italy 
 and Spain, might have vanquished the Gauls, and then 
 carried the standard of the Prophet into England and 
 other countries : had this taken place, we should now all 
 be Mahometans ! 
 
 We shall say a few words on the principal points of 
 their religion. 
 
 Like us, the Muslims adore and venerate Allah, God, 
 
RELIGION. 
 
 69 
 
 the Great, the Good, supreme ruler of the universe. 
 They regard Mahomet as a mediator between God and 
 man. 
 
 Like some sects of Christians, they do not recognise 
 the divinity of Christ, but revere Him as a prophet sent 
 from God. They say that, before the coming of Ma¬ 
 homet, Christ was the greatest of all prophets. 
 
 They believe in the immaculate conception, and that 
 Jesus, inspired by the Almighty, but not partaking of 
 his essence, made revelations to man, which were con¬ 
 firmed by Mahomet. 
 
 Prayer, charity, fasting, and pilgrimages form the 
 basis of the Mahometan religion, which ordains that 
 Mussulmans shall pray five times a day. They look 
 upon Christians, who neglect this duty, as a prayerless 
 people. 
 
 The time for prayer is proclaimed from the top of 
 the minaret, where the Marabout Muezzin announces it 
 to the true believers: ‘ God only is great ; there is but 
 one God, and Mahomet is his prophet. Come to 
 prayer ; come to adore ; God is great ! 
 
 At these words the people fall on their knees, with 
 their faces turned towards the East. 
 
 Whilst he prays the Muslim prostrates himself in 
 such a manner that seven parts of his body—the head, the 
 hands, the feet, and the knees—may touch the ground, 
 which he kisses three times. These genuflexions form a 
 part of every act of prayer, which begins with the words 
 of the first chapter of the Coran :— 
 
 < Praise be to God, Lord of the universe. Mercy is 
 His prerogative. He is the sovereign Lord of the day 
 of judgment. We worship Thee, O Lord, and we implore 
 
70 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 Thy aid. Direct us in the path of virtue ; in the path 
 of those on whom Thou hast bestowed Thy blessing.’ 
 
 Mussulmans always observe the hour of prayer when 
 it is possible to do so. Travelling by coach, when we 
 have changed horses; or by rail, on stopping at a 
 station—if only for a few minutes—we see Arabs leave 
 the carriage and repeat their orisons on the roadside. It 
 Is the same in town ; in his shop, open to the street, the 
 Mussulman spreads his mat on the floor, falls on his 
 knees, and prays. 
 
 Above all the Arab loves to worship God in secluded 
 spots, amidst the beautiful scenes of nature* and on high 
 places, or near the sea—the emblem of eternity. 
 
 Before he begins to pray the Muslim lays aside all 
 ornament, and divests himself of the more showy parts 
 of his dress ; such vanities being thought to be unbe¬ 
 coming the humble state in which the creature ought to 
 approach his Creator. 
 
 We manage these things differently, if not better ; 
 for we array ourselves in our best suit to go to church. 
 
 At Cherchell we one day observed an Arab, after 
 performing his ablutions in the sea, ascend the rocks 
 above it, where, spreading his burnous in lieu of carpet, 
 and taking off the embroidered part of his clothes, with 
 a look of intense devotion he bowed his face to the 
 ground. Rising to his knees, he bent down till he 
 touched the earth with his head. Again and again we 
 saw him repeat these lowly attitudes, supplicating 
 Allah—the same God that we also adore. As we 
 watched the earnest expression of his face we thought 
 not of tenets, dogma, or points of faith ; we felt only 
 sympathy with the religious spirit which seemed to 
 
RELIGION. 
 
 7i 
 
 inspire the Mahometan, for, as he would have said, God 
 is God. 
 
 Shall not the humble prayer of this pious Arab 
 ascend to the throne of the Almighty, because his creed 
 is not orthodox, and is not the belief of some pharisee 
 —who thanks God that he is not as other men are—his 
 own faith being one of the many into which religion is 
 divided and subdivided, one of the thousands which in¬ 
 fallible and Almighty God permits to be spread over the 
 earth ? 
 
 Charity is inculcated in almost every page of the 
 Coran. In many places it is said to purify us from bad 
 actions—a precept evidently taken from the New Testa¬ 
 ment : ‘ Charity covereth a multitude of sins.’ 
 
 One very excellent, and more original, passage says : 
 
 ‘ Abstain from doing wrong ; this is charity to thyself.’ 
 Another, 
 
 ‘ Charity extinguishes sin as water puts out fire.’ 
 And again, 
 
 ‘ Give alms, if it be only the half of a date, for God 
 
 ♦ 
 
 will show mercy only to those who are merciful.’ 
 
 ‘ He who bestows alms in secret, without ostentation, 
 shall appease the anger of God.’ 
 
 e Charity closes seventy doors against evil.’ 
 
 ‘ An angel,’ says the Coran, ‘ always stands before the 
 gate of Paradise, exclaiming, He who gives to the poor 
 to-day shall be rewarded to-morrow.’ 
 
 Throughout the Coran charity is enjoined as an im¬ 
 perative duty. These injunctions and promises are not 
 lost on the Muslims. We have ourselves found them 
 charitable to the indigent and helpless. E^en the poor 
 Arabs give alms to those who are poorer than them- 
 
72 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 selves. We have remarked this especially in the Moorish 
 quarter at Algiers. The beggars in the new town— 
 many of them, who flock there from all parts of the 
 country, being scarcely objects of charity—they leave to 
 the generosity of the Roumi, whom the passing Mussul¬ 
 man rewards with an approving look. 
 
 By charity the Mahometans understand almsgiving. 
 Of charity in the broader sense of the word they know 
 nothing, being just as intolerant as are many sects of 
 Christians towards those who differ from them in opinion. 
 
 The Muslims are permitted to pray that infidels 
 may become Mahometans, but they are forbidden to 
 pray that any other good may happen to them ! 
 
 Such expressions as infidels, renegades, apostates, 
 for others ; and true believers, the faithful, &c. for our¬ 
 selves, are compliments which are applied reciprocally 
 between people who have been taught by their parents 
 a different religion from that of their neighbours, or who 
 have—sometimes from conviction—abandoned it, this 
 being illustrative of the charitable spirit which animates 
 both ! Thus the same word acquires another meaning 
 according to its application. WRat we call a convert to 
 our religion the Arabs call a renegade from theirs, and 
 vice versa. 
 
 The Muslims believe in the Old Testament, but hold 
 it to have been greatly altered, as many Christians 
 believe the New Testament to have been tampered with 
 during the early ages of Christianity. 
 
 They respect Abraham and the prophets, and have 
 also, in common with the Jews, some ritual laws and 
 customs, such as circumcision, prohibition from eating the 
 flesh of swine, &c. 
 
RELIGION. 
 
 73 
 
 They place Jesus, whom they call Sidi Ai'ssa, next 
 after Mahomet, many chapters of the Coran having direct 
 relation to Christ and the Virgin Mary. In fact their 
 religion is a compound of the Hebrew and the Christian 
 faith ; so they hate both ; for the nearer religions approach 
 each other, the greater—as a rule—is the reciprocal de¬ 
 testation of those who profess them ! 
 
 How often does the Protestant mount the pulpit to 
 abuse the papists, as he delights to call the Roman 
 Catholics ! Inspired by the mild spirit of charity, he 
 denounces millions of his fellow-men in his own and 
 neighbouring nations, and others all over the world, as 
 idolaters, superstition-mongers, and the like. 
 
 If we enter a Catholic church, we are informed that 
 not one of the myriads of human beings on the face of 
 the earth can be saved unless they believe exactly what 
 the Church of Rome tells them. The same anathema 
 embraces the past and the future ; all went, or are to go, 
 to a hot place where they will scarcely find a single 
 Catholic Christian, or get one drop of water ! 
 
 When we were in Florence, a priest who was well up 
 in the mysteries of geology, preaching at the Santa 
 Maria Novella, explained to us the exact spot where this 
 vast furnace is situated. ‘ Hell,’ he said, ‘ is placed at a 
 depth of 500,000 feet below the surface of the earth’— 
 he added some odd number which we do not remember. 
 ‘ In this fire,’ he continued, revelling in Dantesque horrors, 
 and rivalling the poet in describing them, ‘ those who are 
 not of our church—and some sinners who are, but who 
 have died without absolution—will burn ; their bodies 
 being so constituted that they can never be consumed. 
 
74 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 As at first ’—proceeded the charitable inquisitor con 
 gusto —‘ so they will burn on and on through eternity.’ 
 
 After ascribing all this to a merciful and just God, the 
 learned theologist, who was a dignitary in the church, drove 
 home to dinner in his carriage, not very like one of 
 Christ’s disciples certainly, but accompanied by a good 
 conscience, satisfied with his exposition of Christian 
 doctrines. 
 
 The Mahometans and Jews, like the Christians, 
 indulge in invective only against those religions which 
 are most like their own. The Chinese, Japanese, and 
 others, whose creeds are very different from theirs, are 
 seldom alluded to, and are never insulted. It is not 
 distance that saves them from abuse, for kindred religions 
 are treated the same wherever their followers may be. 
 
 Fasting is also an ordinance strictly enjoined. We 
 have already alluded to the fast of the Rhamadan, a word 
 which signifies purification from sin. This fast, which is 
 more sacred than any other, occurs in the ninth month of 
 the Arab year. During this period of penance the gates 
 of Paradise—say the Arab doctors of divinity—are 
 kept constantly open, so that it is a happy fate to die at 
 this time. 
 
 None but the sick are exempt from the rigorous ob¬ 
 servance of the Rhamadan, and these only on the condi¬ 
 tion that, when they recover from illness, they shall fast 
 as many days as equal in number those on which they had 
 been allowed to take food. During the thirty days this fast 
 continues Mahometans are not permitted to visit their 
 wives. Not only are they forbidden to eat anything from 
 sunrise to sunset, but, what is worse, they must neither 
 smoke, nor drink coffee; now as the Arab, like the 
 
RELIGION. 
 
 75 
 
 Spaniard, who took the habit from him, has seldom a 
 cigarette out of his mouth, and drinks ten or twelve cups 
 of coffee a day, this is no small privation ; so that the 
 hungry faster, on this exceptional occasion, becomes 
 savage and quarrelsome, like other animals when 
 deprived of their food ; at this period we see a fight 
 almost every day in the streets—a fair fight English 
 fashion—for the Algerines, unlike the Italians and 
 Spaniards, seldom use knives ; but in every instance 
 native peace-makers interfere to separate the combatants, 
 which is more than is usually done in Christian 
 countries. 
 
 The time for eating is thus defined. The faithful 
 are allowed to take nourishment from dusk to dawn, 
 as long as it is impossible to distinguish by light of day 
 a black thread from a white one. 
 
 In Algeria, as is the custom in all countries which 
 profess the Mahometan religion, a salvo of artillery 
 announces the beginning of the fast, and throughout the 
 month a cannon fired at sunset gives the signal that it is 
 over for that day. 
 
 After so many hours of total abstinence, it may be 
 imagined how welcome to the ears of the hungry popu¬ 
 lation is the report of this gun. The town seems to 
 awake, the scene changes at once from a state of sulky 
 obedience to animation and joy. The minarets are 
 lighted up, whilst from the highest gallery the Muezzin, 
 in a loud and solemn voice, calls the faithful to evening 
 prayers. 
 
 After hastily reciting a verse from the Coran everyone 
 begins to eat. Many of the lower classes carry bread, a 
 few dates, or the like, about them. At such a moment 
 
76 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 they become demonstrative, and are too excited to stand 
 on ceremony. 
 
 We were one day passing an Arab just as the cannon 
 fired.—‘ Entends-tu ’ said he, ‘ look ; ’ and quick as 
 thought—substituting a pious ejaculation for a prayer— 
 he took from the hood of his burnous a bit of bread, 
 which he bolted down his throat with triumphant satisfac¬ 
 tion, leaving us to admire his self-denial and forethought 
 at the same time. 
 
 A pilgrimage to Mecca, the birthplace of the Prophet, 
 is compulsory once in life, and more than a single visit 
 ought to be made ; many Arabs go there several times ; 
 in fact the oftener the better for the souls of the true 
 believers. 
 
 It is not necessary to take off the shoes on entering; 
 mosques, unless it be intended to tread on the carpet or 
 matting, which is spread over the greater part of the 
 floor of the temple, and is regarded as sacred. Anyone 
 may walk on the uncovered margin. 
 
 The respect with which the Arabs are accustomed to 
 regard the carpet is perhaps the reason why they avoid 
 stepping on it in their shoes, which they leave at the 
 door when they enter our rooms ; or, apart from religious 
 association, this may be considered unpolite. 
 
 As we have said in a former chapter, women of the 
 middle and higher classes are not allowed to go out 
 alone: accompanied by their elder female relations and 
 servants, they sometimes visit the cemeteries on Fri¬ 
 days ; attending the mosques is no exception to the 
 rule, for they are not permitted to enter them before 
 they have attained the age of sixty, that is, when they 
 
RELIGION. 
 
 77 
 
 are old and ugly enough not to cause their husbands any 
 more jealousy. 
 
 It is a mistake to suppose that Muslims believe that 
 women have no souls ; a passage in the Coran asserts 
 the contrary. We asked a Marabout what the theory is 
 amongst the true believers in regard to women’s souls: 
 he told us that they were of an inferior order, and would 
 not be free like those of men; that in heaven also, women 
 will be subject to the will of man. He gave us more 
 information of the kind, not very intelligible, but tending 
 to the point that the slavery of Mahometan females in 
 this world will be carried into the next—poor women! 
 
 Every Muslim is allowed to have four wives, and as 
 many concubines as he likes, or can afford to keep. 
 This is the law of the Prophet. Priests—Marabouts— 
 marry like our Protestant clergy. It is however very 
 unusual for a Mahometan to marry a Christian. Such a 
 union is not positively forbidden in the Coran, but it is 
 not generally approved of. A recent and very remark¬ 
 able instance has taken place : a distinguished Marabout, 
 Abd-Eslam, grand Cherif, a high dignitary in the Mos¬ 
 lem Church, having married an English lady. This 
 marriage, which was solemnised at the British Consulate 
 at Tangiers, created a great sensation at the time. 
 
 With regard to a future state, there is apparently 
 something very like materialism in Mahomet’s heavens, 
 composed of silver, gold, precious stones, &c. ; but it was 
 not his intention to inculcate such a belief; for, as we 
 have already remarked, he copied his religion from ours, 
 as far as he found it convenient, and the Muslim creed is 
 in reality only a mixture of Jewish and Christian doc¬ 
 trines accommodated to Oriental taste and traditions. 
 
73 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 The Coran is not very explicit on the dogma of 
 eternal punishment; the generality of Mahometans hold 
 that exclusion from the delights of paradise will of itself 
 be a sufficient chastisement; some believe that there will 
 be a preparatory stage of moral purification-—a kind of 
 purgatory—to prepare sinners for the bliss of heaven ; 
 few of them conceive hell to be a place of everlasting 
 torture without an object; and is it unreasonable to 
 deny that the Almighty, having a foreknowledge of 
 all that is to take place in the future—who knew the 
 end from the beginning—would have created man, to 
 pass a few years on earth—a mere drop in the sea of 
 Time, and nothing as compared with Eternity—if he 
 were at last to be cast into a place of unending tor¬ 
 ment ? 
 
 God is, and ever will be, in a state of eternal and 
 perfect bliss. Could He be perfectly happy if the greater 
 part of those whom His fiat has called into existence 
 those who have died in the great past, and those who 
 are to die in the unknown future—must exist throughout 
 the same eternity in unmitigated misery ? 12 For the 
 most sinful wretch who ever lived his few checkered 
 years on this planet, surely the chastisement would exceed 
 
 the desert. 
 
 La Rochfoucault has observed that ‘ there is always 
 something in the misfortunes of others which is not en¬ 
 tirely displeasing to ourselves.’ 
 
 There are men of a morose and cruel disposition who 
 do not confine such sentiments to this life, but enhance 
 the satisfaction they feel in the anticipation of their own 
 salvation by associating with it the damnation of others. 
 Whilst they assert that God is merciful and just, they 
 
RELIGION. 
 
 79 
 
 tell us that there will be no after-forgiveness ; that He, 
 who has enjoined us to forgive one another, will consign 
 all the human race—except a few elect—to never-ceasing 
 torture. Thus they hold two conflicting beliefs, incon¬ 
 sistent with each other, and as blasphemous as they are 
 contradictory; for, as the Almighty is the essence of good¬ 
 ness and mercy, it is blasphemy to set bounds to His 
 clemency, ascribing to Him revenge, an attribute of sin¬ 
 ful humanity. Punishment ought to be reformatory in 
 its nature ; nay, to operate good for the future can be 
 its only design ; to punish where there is no opportunity 
 for amendment must be both useless and cruel. 
 
 An English divine, writing on this subject, and look¬ 
 ing at it from a rational and merciful point of view, has 
 remarked that, 1 Whatever begins in time may end in 
 time; that there is this essential difference between the 
 eternity of good and evil, the one has known no beginn¬ 
 ing, having existed from all eternity ; that the other has 
 had a commencement, and may therefore end ; that evil 
 has nothing divine in it, being finite, not infinite in its 
 essence, it can consequently have no inherent or endless 
 vitality.’ 
 
 Let us humbly hope that whatever be the retribution 
 reserved for us, our weak and imperfect natures will 
 be judged mercifully, and that the Almighty will not con¬ 
 demn those He has permitted to be born in this world to 
 be hopelessly lost in the next. 
 
 We shall close this chapter on the religion of 
 the native inhabitants, and give a new turn to the 
 thoughts into which it has led us, by correcting the 
 common, but erroneous impression that the crescent is 
 
8 o 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 exclusively the emblem of Islamism. From remotest 
 antiquity this has been the symbol of the goddess 
 Astarte, who had a temple at Carthage. Thus it is 
 seen on Numidian monoliths, and the traditional custom 
 was transmitted to the Roman period. 14 
 
8i 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 PREDESTINATION AND SUPERSTITION. 
 
 The happiest moment of my life 
 Is neighbour to the hour that sees its greatest grief. 
 
 The Traitor: a drama. 
 
 Hence, to the realms of Night, dire Demon, hence ! 
 Thy chain of adamant can bind 
 That little world, the human mind, 
 
 And sink its noblest powers to impotence. —Rogers. 
 
 As is well known, the Muslims believe that all events in 
 life and the destiny of the soul in the next world have 
 been predetermined from the beginning ; not that we 
 are the less responsible for our good or evil actions on 
 this account. As we can be admitted into paradise only 
 through the mercy of God, we must as long as we live 
 strive to do good and avoid evil ; for, whatever be finally 
 predestined for us in the next world—whether we shall 
 be raised up to heaven or condemned to punishment— 
 the happiness of the one state and the misery of the 
 other will be increased, according to the way in which 
 we have conducted ourselves in this. 
 
 Such is the Mahometan belief. 
 
 The question of man’s ultimate salvation or perdition 
 having been known, and consequently determined, before 
 
 G 
 
82 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 his birth, is a proposition which, entering on the inex¬ 
 plicable, we cannot follow, and have therefore nothing to 
 say. 
 
 We prefer to relate a circumstance illustrative of 
 Arab belief in the dogma of fatalism, that took place 
 the year before last. 
 
 On the first of November, the steppes which deve- 
 lope themselves to the southeast of Tiaret were the scene 
 of unusual animation. From break of day the people— 
 to use the figurative expression of the Arabs—had 
 made powder speak ; for the firing of cannon in Oulad- 
 bou-Gheddou and Oulad-Mansour told to the blue sky 
 of Africa that this was the fete of Sidi-Mouley-Abd- 
 el-Kader, and was the prelude to the rejoicings which 
 were to celebrate the day in honour of this venerated 
 Marabout. 
 
 Shortly after noon a noble cavalier, the Cai'd 
 Kaddour ben-Messoussa, who had been conspicuous 
 amongst the rest for his high spirits and handsome face, 
 separated from the company and, walking his horse 
 quietly till he was out of sight, put spurs to his steed, 
 which now carried him along with the speed of the wind. 
 He drew up before a gourbi or hut, the door of which 
 was partly open, and a young girl stepped forward to 
 welcome him. The Cai'd, having dismounted, clasped 
 the maiden tenderly in his arms, entreating her to 
 accompany him to the fete. At first she objected ; but, 
 at length giving way to his solicitations, she ordered a 
 mule to be saddled, and with joy in their hearts and love 
 in their eyes, they set out for the Ouada. 
 
 Kaddour’s companion was marvellously beautiful ; 
 the mere contemplation of her charms gave to those who 
 
PREDESTINATION AND SUPERSTITION 
 
 33 
 
 looked upon her a foretaste of the delights promised by 
 the Prophet to the elect in paradise, where the splendour 
 of the houris pales the fresh colour of the rose. 
 
 An elegant and richly embroidered dress in the 
 Moorish fashion covered, but did not entirely conceal, 
 Ai'cha’s charming form. She was a dancing girl, whom 
 the Cai'd had known some time at Djeffal, and whom he 
 wished to introduce into the tribe, which he had just 
 been appointed to command. 
 
 The peculiar habits, mode of life, and the style of 
 Ai'cha’s costume are accounted for by her profession. 
 
 In Algeria, as in some parts of Europe, people of 
 certain localities follow particular callings. The Galle¬ 
 gos of Spain are generally water-carriers, Savoy furnishes 
 chimney-sweeps, and Italy contributes her box-organists. 
 Here, in Algeria, the Kabyles till the soil. At Biskra 
 children are born to become porters, the negroes 
 whitewash our houses, and Djeffal sends us dancing 
 girls. 
 
 At an Arab fete, or at the close of some hospitable 
 repast (diffa), we usually see one of these young and 
 pretty chattahas balancing herself lightly in the graceful 
 movements of the dance, to the discordant and mono¬ 
 tonous music of an orchestra composed of a cane flute 
 and a tambourine. We admire the plastic poetry of her 
 seductive form, as she dances a kind of fandango ; but 
 we miss the merry sound of the castenet and the melo¬ 
 dious accompaniment of the guitar or the mandoline. 
 The performance ended, she comes forward, her hair 
 hanging over her shoulders, her bosom naked and palpi¬ 
 tating, and her eyes sparkling with fire, as, half-kneeling, 
 she throws back her white forehead, on which we place a 
 
8 4 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 cold coin, when we ask her, ‘ Enta mnin ? to which hei 
 
 reply is almost sure to be, 1 Djeffal. 
 
 Djeffal, hidden in a little corner of the province of 
 Algiers, enjoys, as we have said, the privilege of giving 
 birth to the chattahas, who from Tunis to Marocco, and 
 from the littoral to the Sahara, add to the brilliancy of 
 the fetes given by the Cheurfa and the Djouad. 
 
 On the plain where the Ouada was celebrated cava¬ 
 liers of distinction—men of the great tent—were dashing 
 about in every direction, for their horses, excited by 
 the report of the guns, seemed on that day like winged 
 steeds. The natives of inferior condition ran on foot, 
 brandishing their arms over theii heads, and firing 
 powder at the tents in which the women and young 
 girls of both tribes were assembled. Dressed in their 
 holiday suit, their arms encircled with bi acelets, theii 
 ankles ornamented with their khalkhals ; the Maras and 
 the Chiras grouped in a circle had passed the day 
 chanting hymns in honour of the Marabout whose pro¬ 
 tection they invoked. 
 
 Perceiving Ai'cha approaching, the cavaliers advanced 
 to meet her, and in token of respect they discharged 
 their guns and pistols at her feet, repeating the ceremony 
 ao-ain and again, till the beautiful chattaha was enve¬ 
 loped in a cloud of blue smoke, the saltpetre smell of 
 which seemed to affect the olfactory nerves of this wild 
 beauty more agreeably than the odoriferous perfumes of 
 the East. Ai'cha, blushing with pleasure and pride, sat 
 down near the Caid that she might, by her presence, 
 grace and animate the feast, which was an open-air 
 entertainment given to the people who had taken part in 
 the dance. After dinner the guests returned to. their 
 
PREDESTINATION AND SUPERSTITION 85 
 
 douars. Ai'cha now sprang lightly on her mule, and 
 rode forward; accompanied by Kaddour, and othei 
 cavaliers who wished to form an escort in her honour. 
 
 The little cavalcade proceeded gaily on, and many 
 were the sallies of wit in a conversation, the principal 
 subjects of which were the chattaha and the dance. 
 
 4 Aicha,’ said the Ca'fd, following up a pleasant chat 
 began in a low voice, ‘thou may’st have remarked from 
 the manner in which my friends greeted thy arrival that 
 they are enchanted with thy beauty. I have already 
 thanked them for their courtesy and kindness; disdain 
 not thou, my beloved, to show that thou also hast been 
 touched by their polite and gallant homage make powdei 
 speak in honour of them.’ 
 
 Ai’cha, who had never fired a gun, was little disposed 
 to comply with the wish of her lover ; but, fearing to 
 displease him, she held out her hand resolutely towaids 
 the mekahla which, on a sign from the Cai’d, Ezzin ben- 
 Abadi had just loaded. 
 
 On touching the cold steel a feeling of terror seized 
 her, which she instantly repressed and, pointing the gun at 
 Kaddour, she fired. The Cai’d turned round, smiled, and 
 besought her to continue. Ezzin then received the gun to 
 reload. His own ramrod being a little too short, he 
 borrowed another from one of his comrades. The hoise 
 which Ben-Abadi rode, a high-spirited animal, reared re¬ 
 peatedly, and its rider was with great difficulty able to 
 perform what was required of him ; at last he succeeded, 
 and presented the gun to the chattaha. She took it this 
 time with a charming affectation of bravado, put it lightly 
 to her shoulder, and again chose her lover—who was a 
 few paces in advance—for her mark. She aimed at his 
 
85 
 
 ALGERIA AS 17 IS. 
 
 head, in order to make him turn towards her, and then 
 touched the trigger with her finger. The gun went off. 
 The explosion was accompanied by a whistling sound, 
 and a peculiar noise which nothing for the moment could 
 explain. The report did not appear to have been heard 
 by the. Cai'd, whose steed proceeded as if nothing had 
 happened ; but, suddenly, on the spotless white of his 
 burnous was seen, near the neck, a red stain which, in¬ 
 creasing in size, dyed the cavalier’s dress with crimson. 
 He had just let fall the reins of his horse, whose mane 
 he instinctively tried to seize, when his friends rushed to 
 him. His eyes were half-closed, a livid paleness spread 
 over his face, whilst blood flowed from a wound in the 
 neck, which was pierced through with the ramrod that 
 Ezzin had forgotten and left in the barrel of the gun he 
 had given to Ai'cha. 
 
 Being placed on the ground the Cai'd, making a vio¬ 
 lent effort, pronounced some broken words of resignation 
 attesting his belief in the dogma of predestination. 
 
 It would be impossible to describe the despair of 
 Ezzin. As for Ai'cha, driven to madness, she tore her 
 face—as is the custom of the Arabs—and uttered the 
 doleful and disconsolate cries which women of the East 
 give vent to when the angel of Death has touched one 
 they love with the tip of his black wing. 
 
 A native doctor, called in haste, tended the wounded 
 man till he could be transferred to a military hospital at 
 Tiaret, where he died the next day, after enduring great 
 suffering. 
 
 The tragical denouement of the fete was altogether 
 accidental, for no thought of crime could be associated 
 with its sad termination. 
 
PREDESTINATION AND SUPERSTITION. 87 
 
 Some writers call the religion of the Mahometans a 
 superstition. This can hardly be said of a faith founded 
 on our own. That the Muslims, in common with many 
 Eastern nations, are disposed to be superstitious, is true. 
 This is partly to be attributed to the imaginative and 
 credulous disposition of Orientals, who have preserved 
 many of the customs, and something of the creed, of their 
 pagan ancestors, which the religion of Mahomet has not 
 been able to eradicate ; and is in particular the result of 
 ignorance, as it is amongst the uneducated classes in 
 more enlightened Europe and in America, where a man 
 and his wife were publicly burnt alive in Mexico for 
 witchcraft during the present year. 
 
 The brigands in Italy, before setting out on their 
 kidnapping expeditions, invoke the protection of the 
 Madonna, and call on their saints when they torture and 
 murder prisoners. Thus the Arab-robber—who has 
 also his protector in heaven—when engaged in a ma¬ 
 rauding undertaking, especially in the Sahara, does not 
 fail to appeal to the Marabout Sidi Abd-el Kader Dje- 
 laly, whose philanthropy was so great that he could, when 
 alive, refuse no one, and is now supposed to help those 
 who pray to him. 
 
 The Mahometans have great faith in omens, and 
 believe in charms, like many of our country people at 
 home, examples of whose credulity are constantly 
 chronicled in the newspapers, and will continue to be 
 registered in future, as long as little boys and girls are 
 not obliged to go to school whilst they remain children ; 
 in other words, till education is made compulsory, like 
 sobriety, humanity to animals, sale of property pro< 
 bono publico , manning the navy by impressment in time 
 
88 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 of war, and so on. But to oblige parents, in the interest 
 of their children, to have them taught reading and writ¬ 
 ing—resources which might be some compensation to 
 the poor for the pleasures which money procures for 
 the rich—acquirements which might cause many to 
 avoid vice, and teach everyone how to become respect¬ 
 able members of society—is said to be un-English, so we 
 had better say no more about it. 
 
 Many of our friends in the midland counties find an 
 
 omen, good or bad, in the number of magpies they may 
 
 chance to see together. On setting out on any business, 
 
 to meet an ugly old woman is supposed to bring bad 
 
 luck. The Arab has also a predilection for pretty faces, 
 
 » 
 
 and if on leaving his hut he meets a young and hand¬ 
 some girl, who at his desire uncovers her bosom to 
 make the favourable omen of meeting her more sure in 
 its result, he feels certain of success in whatever he 
 undertakes on that day. Compliance with such a re¬ 
 quest under the circumstance is never refused, par¬ 
 ticularly in the Sahara. When he leaves home in the 
 morning, the Arab also looks upon seeing age and ugli¬ 
 ness as boding no good. He is, as everybody knows, 
 an admirer of fine horses ; and, on the same principle, 
 if on quitting his douar he should see a dirty, ill-con¬ 
 ditioned mare, he believes it to presage disaster, so ho 
 goes back into his dwelling. To hear himself re-called 
 just as he closes his door is a bad sign. As a pendant 
 to our magpie superstition, the Arabs regard a crow 
 flying quite alone as unpropitious ; the same by a 
 single partridge ; whereas, two seen at the same time 
 betoken good fortune. 
 
 Belief in the evil eye is general amongst the Arabs, 
 
PREDESTINATION AND SUPERSTITION. 89 
 
 and many wear talismans and amulets to aveit its 
 effects. Parents are particularly solicitous to guard 
 their children from its mischievous influence, and, where 
 they think they have reason to fear it, have recourse to 
 charms to dispel the baneful glance. They do not like 
 people to look too long or too attentively at anything which 
 belongs to them, a camel or a horse for example, unless 
 Allah is invoked to protect it from the evil eye. An 
 artist who cannot do this in Arabic, and would not be 
 understood if he said it in his own language, has seldom 
 an opportunity of drawing or painting such animals dal 
 •vero, which requires time and constant observation of 
 his object. An old Arab told us with great gravity, that 
 he saw a painter—‘ Allah confound their race ’—making 
 a sketch of his donkey, which soon after went off its 
 food, pined away, and died, a victim to the evil eye of 
 
 the man of the brush and pencil ! 
 
 When anyone admires the horse of anothei, and 
 
 does not observe the formula, ‘ May God protect it from 
 the evil eye,’ he is supposed to envy the owner the pos¬ 
 session of it. 
 
 The Jews still find omens in the sacrifice of animals. 
 These rites are usually performed once a week. On 
 such occasions Jewesses may be seen offering up fowls 
 at the sea-side. After some mummeries have been 
 gone through, the half-dead bird is thrown or flutters 
 into the sea, where the ‘favoured people’ discover a 
 good or bad prognostic in its last struggles. 
 
 When we were at Constantine we had an oppoi- 
 tunity of seeing the performance of the Khouans 
 Aissaouas. These fanatics, in execution of their feats, 
 <ret wilder than dancing dervishes. When excited by 
 
90 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 music and the applause of their audience they be¬ 
 come half-mad in their exaltation, their contortions 
 and cries giving them the appearance of people in a fit 
 of St. Vitus’s dance ; and as if to throw off every resem¬ 
 blance to the dignity of [man, they roar like lions, yelp 
 like dogs, and imitate the movements and howls of 
 various animals ; in fact, when they have worked them¬ 
 selves up to the last pitch of frenzy, they look and act 
 like demons, burn themselves with fire, swallow nails, 
 eat scorpions, or dance on the sharp edge of a sword, 
 and so on. 
 
 It is a most degrading spectacle, in which there is 
 no doubt some deception, for one of the brotherhood 
 lately died from the effect of inadvertently swallowing 
 a nail ; but enough of truth remains in their unnatural 
 antics to make a scene of this kind highly disgusting. 
 
 Arab women have also similar performances, in 
 which some of the more revolting features are, however, 
 omitted. We were present at an exhibition of this kind 
 at Cherchell, where, walking one day near a Marabout, 
 we were attracted by a peculiar noise which seemed to 
 proceed from the inside. A young woman, who was at 
 the door of the little building, surmising our curiosity, in¬ 
 vited us to enter, adding that no Arab is ever permitted 
 to be present on these occasions, but that for a Roumi 
 it did not matter. The principal actors were two young 
 ladies of a respectable position in society, who, as a cure 
 for some malady, were killing themselves with excite¬ 
 ment and frantic contortions. This—except the con¬ 
 clusions, which are our own—was what our introducer 
 told us, adding that they had already made considerable 
 progress towards recovery. The remedy was not the 
 
PREDESTINATION AND SUPERSTITION. 
 
 91 
 
 less strange, whatever might be the result, for never had 
 we imagined that the ligaments and muscles of the 
 human neck could stand the swinging and jerking we 
 now saw them subjected to. It was indeed fearful to 
 watch these young women ; their faces deadly pale, a 
 wild ecstatic fire in their eyes, their long dishevelled 
 hair thrown about at every movement, as they bobbed 
 forward almost to the ground, jerking themselves up, 
 and suddenly throwing their heads and bodies back with 
 a rapidity and energy sufficient to crack the spine or 
 loosen the head, which we expected every minute to see 
 flying across the little temple! The backward and 
 forward action was sometimes varied during a few 
 seconds, by swaying the body from side to side. 
 
 When exhausted by the terrible ordeal they had gone 
 through, the poor girls, falling prostrated into the arms 
 of their friends, burst into hysterical fits of crying. 
 
 Other women followed, who enacted various feats, 
 such as passing a lighted torch under and over their 
 bare arms, putting the flame into their mouths and 
 making it come out of their nostrils, &c. They did not 
 appear to have any appetite for scorpions, at least we 
 did not see such delicacies served up. It is impossible 
 not to feel pity for these poor victims of ignorance and 
 credulity. 
 
 In the adjoining empire of Marocco, where the 
 inhabitants are in general far behind the Algerines on 
 the way to civilisation, the degraded condition of the 
 lower classes renders them as superstitious as savages, or 
 as any barbarous race can be. In that country sorcery 
 and all the occult sciences are practised by professional 
 magicians, who deceive the people by tricks and jugglery. 
 
92 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 These magicians have, besides other marvels, a moun¬ 
 tain which speaks and divines futurity like the Augurs 
 of old. 
 
 Thus do the ignorant amongst the Muslims, like the 
 ignorant all over the world, abase the fair form of 
 Religion, and set up Superstition in her stead. 
 
93 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 LANGUAGE. 
 
 I’ve taught me other tongues—and in strange eyes 
 
 Have made me not a stranger. — Childe Harold's Pilgrimage . 
 
 A KNOWLEDGE of Arabic, sufficient for practical pur¬ 
 poses, may be acquired by those who will give themselves 
 the trouble to study the excellent grammars and other 
 elementary works in French and Arabic. 
 
 The strange characters must of course be first over¬ 
 come. They are difficult enough, as each of the twenty- 
 nine hieroglyphical-looking letters of the alphabet takes 
 four different forms according to its place in the sentence. 
 They are called separate, middle, and final letters. 
 
 An almost insuperable difficulty is learning to read 
 Arabic, not on account of the complications alluded to, 
 but owing to the orthographical signs, and those used 
 instead of the vowels, which are three in number, being 
 omitted in most manuscripts, and are properly placed 
 only in valuable editions of books carefully got up and 
 not easily met with. The vowels themselves are never 
 written or printed, as they are with us ; their omission, 
 when indicated at all, is marked by the signs we have 
 spoken of—signs which resemble those employed in 
 
94 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 French to denote the accents—being put over or under 
 the word to which the vowels belong. Nothing short of 
 many years’ practice in reading books printed without 
 these substitutes for them can enable a man to read with 
 facility. To comprehend the task we must imagine an 
 English book without vowels and with no more punctua¬ 
 tion than we find in a legal document put into the hands 
 of a foreigner, or even of an Englishman, and think how 
 much he would make of it. Of course in the grammars 
 and other books intended for instruction, these signs are 
 carefully given, and, as copious vocabularies and dia¬ 
 logues form a part of such works, enough of the language 
 may be learned from them for conversation with the 
 natives, for whom much talking is too great an exertion. 
 It is well known that the Arabs read and write from 
 right to left, their books and manuscripts beginning at 
 the last page in ours. A little practice makes this in¬ 
 version familiar to us. 
 
 The Arabs have the sound of our ‘ th,’ which some 
 foreigners find so difficult to pronounce ; it is their ^ 
 ts. The Spaniards, who have precisely the same in 
 their ‘ ce ’ and ‘ ci,’ no doubt took it from the Moors, as 
 they did the ‘ j ’ (jota) from the Arab _ kh. In fact, a 
 
 great part of what adds force and character to the 
 beautiful language of Spain is derived from the same 
 source. Thus, such as speak Spanish may easily acquire 
 those deep Arab gutturals which seem to proceed from 
 the region of the lowest button on the waistcoat. 
 
 We may here mention that, the Spanish element 
 being considerable in Algiers, those who know the 
 language have opportunities of keeping up their practice 
 in this useful idiom, which, after the English—as a mother 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 95 
 
 tongue—is the one most spoken in the world. Some 
 of the shops—particularly cigar shops—are kept by 
 Spaniards. It is true that these people usually speak 
 the dialects of their own provinces, Valencia, Alicant, and 
 others, but most of them are able to express themselves 
 more intelligibly to those who understand Castilian. 
 Some come from Murcia, where tolerably good Spanish 
 is spoken by all classes. In society we occasionally 
 meet with families who are either from Old or New 
 Castile, and people of education generally speak well, to 
 whatever part of Spain they belong. 
 
 Whilst on the subject of language we may remark, 
 that as no people visit foreign countries as much as the 
 English, to none is a knowledge of languages so necessary. 
 After money, this is the most indispensable accompani¬ 
 ment of a journey. We can say of language what we 
 say of time, language is money ; but it is not so much 
 the negative advantage of saving expense, as the positive 
 gain in information and pleasure, which makes the 
 acquisition of so much value. Yet how few of the 
 English we meet abroad can speak even the one—almost 
 universal tongue—French. The reason cannot be that 
 they have not time to learn it. Bulwer, in one of his 
 admirable novels, replies to this apology when he adverts 
 to the quarters of hours we pass without doing anything ; 
 the old excuse is in truth the worst. As little can those 
 who travel on the Continent so often, complain of want 
 of practice, for it is their own fault if they will not 
 associate with the natives of the countries they visit. 
 Whatever be the reason it is a fact, that very few 
 Englishmen can speak more than a pass-his-way kind 
 of French. Not many are able to put together two 
 
9 6 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 consecutive sentences correctly. There are of course 
 exceptions amongst the more—we may say ambitious 
 classes, who, speaking well, can sustain a conveisation 
 with any intelligent stranger they may fall in with on 
 their journey; but by far the greater number not only 
 know little French, but, speaking what they have picked 
 up with the pure cockney, or the drawling Dundreary 
 accent, appear to be talking English when we do not 
 catch what they say. Even in our own language this 
 vitiated pronunciation, when carried too far, is only vulgar 
 affectation,—applied to French it becomes ridiculous. 
 
 With all these shortcomings, no nation is so little indul¬ 
 gent to foreigners as we are to those who speak and pro¬ 
 nounce the Anglo-Saxon badly. 
 
 Travelling by rail we one day heard an Arab, who 
 spoke good French, make some remarks to an English¬ 
 man who sat near him. As the Algerines, supposing 
 French to be universal, know nothing of any other idiom, ^ ^ 
 our Arab in the train, obtaining no reply, remarked to a 
 friend that it was a pity that so nice a gentleman should 
 be deaf and dumb ! The Arab urchin who cleans boots 
 or sells matches—seeing more of our countrymen—does 
 not fall into the same mistake. He gets together a few 
 English phrases, as part of his stock-in-trade to meet the 
 requirements of the helpless Briton, who has passed 
 months, perhaps years abroad : ‘ clean your boots ?’ ‘fine 
 matches, Sir,’ ‘ripe oranges,’ &c. His vocabulary not 
 beinp r very copious, the lad has recourse to signs, counts 
 numbers on his fingers and tries to explain himself in 
 any way he can, except by speaking French, which ex¬ 
 perience has shown to be a loss of time and sous. 
 
 At Mostaganem we saw an unmistakable English- 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 97 
 
 man, who must have got so far through the linguistic 
 talent of some railway official. He was talking to a 
 coachman, whose carriage he seemed desirous to engage 
 for a drive: ‘ Ou, Monsieur, desire-t’il aller?’ enquired 
 the driver. ‘Now/ said the Briton, ‘if you wish to be 
 understood in a Christian tongue, speak English to 
 me/ 
 
 In talking to Arabs it is necessary to use the infini- \Cc T 
 tive mood, for it is the only part of the verb they under¬ 
 stand. Rejecting the complication of conjugation and 
 leaving out all inconvenient words, they reduce lan^ua^e 
 to a comprehensible degree of simplicity. 
 
 In Arabic they‘thee’ and ‘thou’ everybody, how¬ 
 ever little they know the person addressed, or however 
 high his rank may be. Thus a familiar and droll turn is 
 given to conversation with them. When an Arab does 
 not under stand he says 'iticikcicfo , or simply repeats what 
 
 you say. Here is a specimen. We ask one to find us 
 a model to paint. 
 
 We (anxiously)—‘ Toi pas parler avec Maure ?’ 
 
 Arab (smiling)—‘ Moi pas parler avec Maure/ 
 
 We (angryand disappointed)—‘Toi bete, pas com- 
 prendre/ ’TvfMO 
 
 Arab (mildly)—‘ Moi bete pas comprendre/ 
 
 We (imperatively)—‘ Toi chercher Maure a present/ 
 
 Arab—‘ Makach, pas comprendre/ 
 
 Apiopos of models, it is not easy in this country, 
 where there aie so many varied costumes and types of 
 character, for the artist to find an Arab to paint, as 
 Mahomet and prejudice forbid them to have their like¬ 
 ness taken ; we have asked many, but the greater part 
 had religious or other scruples; at last we sought and 
 
 II 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 98 
 
 found a fine-looking Kabyle for a full-length figure, 
 thinking he might be less punctilious ; but we had 
 scarcely sketched in the head, when he swore ‘ by the 
 beard of the Prophet ’ he would stand it no longer, nor 
 risk the Evil Eye and Heaven for any Roumi in Chris¬ 
 tendom. A good-natured Black, who was not so bigoted, 
 threw a burnous over his shoulder, and enabled us to 
 complete the picture. 
 
 There is, however, no want of subjects for the 
 painter in Algeria. Nature and architecture abound with 
 objects of interest, The African landscape, with its 
 novel and wonderful vegetation, presents endless variety, 
 and is inviting ground for brush and pencil. We may 
 choose Roman and Moorish ruins, where Arabs, classi¬ 
 cally draped, sit on the old walls, the deep blue sea, or 
 the Atlas mountains, forming a background ; 01 a scene 
 of nomadic life, such as an Arab encampment with tents, 
 camels, and mules. Another picture is the sea-like 
 Sahara, where caravans are the ships and the oases the 
 
 islands on the apparent water. 
 
 The artist must not mind a crowd of Bedouins, veiled 
 
 women, European and native boys, forming a circle of 
 which he is the centre. It is indeed painting under 
 difficulties when we cannot see our object: but the 
 Arabs, who have an instinctive notion of politeness, send 
 away 'these curious intruders, reserving only the best 
 places for themselves. This has often happened to us , 
 but, being of a disposition easily satisfied—when we get 
 all we want—we go on with our work as soon as the 
 course has been cleared. 
 
 After this little digression we shall conclude what we 
 have said about language—and the want of it—by re- 
 
LANGUAGE. 
 
 99 
 
 marking that Arabs who were men of middle-age about 
 the time of the conquest seldom speak French. 
 
 A friend of ours, who had a pretty wife, told us that 
 one day, in passing a mosque, he was accosted by a 
 venerable Mahometan of a superior order or caste who 
 addressed him in Arabic. As the Mussulman looked at 
 the lady, our Englishman at first thought the stranger 
 was proposing to buy, and then to marry her ; but he 
 soon found, from the old Turk passing his hand over his 
 face, that he was only remonstrating with him for 
 allowing his wife to go about without the adjar, which 
 ought to conceal her face from eyes profane! 
 
 This calls to mind another illustration of Arab man¬ 
 ners and customs. We were travelling in a distant part 
 of Algeria. In our compartment of the diligence was a 
 young woman who, having no adjar, had not the usual 
 advantage over us. To the genuine Arab cast of coun¬ 
 tenance, regular features, brown complexion, black hair, 
 and large black eyes, she united a lively manner and a 
 graceful figure. Her dress was of the showy kind worn 
 by women in the country, who do not cover the face 
 with the adjar, and their persons with the hai'k, except 
 when they go to town. There was the usual display of 
 trinketry both as to taste and quantity. We had not 
 been long together when she addressed the chronicler of 
 national characteristics with, ‘ Is this lady thy wife ? ’ 
 being answered affirmatively, she enquired—‘ How many 
 hast thou ?’ ‘ Only this one. ’ ‘ Only one ! ’ she exclaimed 
 in astonishment, and after a pause remarked, 'For a 
 gentleman one wife is not enough,’ to which she added 
 something which seemed to indicate doubts as to whether 
 so limited a harem was not the result of economy or 
 
 H 2 
 
IOO 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 stinginess, but concluded by making a fair offer of herself 
 and her charms to supply the deficiency. 
 
 We close the chapters on the indigenous population 
 with the following observations. 
 
 The native inhabitants of Algeria have considerably 
 diminished in numbers since the conquest in 1830. 
 This has been caused by war, emigration, and even by 
 famine, when certain districts have been infested by 
 locusts. 
 
 At the time this beautiful country became a colony 
 of France, many of the Kabyles, Arabs, and Moors 
 abandoned their homes for the neighbouring states of 
 Marocco and Tunis, where the manners and customs of 
 the people are more congenial to the taste of their 
 co-religionists, who in these countries have not their 
 Christian masters always before them. Some of those 
 also who make the pilgrimage to Mecca remain in Syria 
 for the same reason. 
 
 Notwithstanding this decrease in the native popula¬ 
 tion—a decrease which continues only in a very slight 
 degree, if it has not ceased altogether—the indigenous 
 element is still as four to one of the European, being 
 above two millions and a half to about six hundred 
 thousand foreigners including the French troops. 
 
 New settlers are however constantly establishing 
 themselves in different parts of the colony. Since the 
 war with Germany, many families from Alsace and 
 Lorraine have fled from the persecutions of the Prussians 
 to find happier homes here. 
 
 The civil conflict in Spain has also had a similar 
 result in regard to emigration from that country; Algeria, 
 being near, and offering so many advantages for the 
 
LANGUAGE . 
 
 IOI 
 
 agricultural pursuits to which the class who emigrate 
 dedicate themselves, has always been the place first 
 chosen by them. They have lately come over in such 
 numbers that the attention of the authorities has been 
 directed to the application of the international law of 
 recruitment between France and Spain. 
 
 Enterprising people, who think the resources of their 
 own country insufficient, or have found the ground they 
 wished to purchase in possession of others, have in 
 Algeria a new, productive, and exhaustless field for labour, 
 excellent soil, and one of the finest climates in the world. 
 Thousands of acres of uncultivated land may be bought 
 at reasonable prices from the government, which offers 
 favourable conditions and every facility to industrious 
 settlers, who have no occasion to seek in distant parts of 
 the globe advantages which are to be found so near 
 home. There are several English farmers established in 
 the colony, but they are almost all men of property, who 
 
 do business on a large scale. 
 
 When it is remembered that the Marabouts are in¬ 
 corrigible in exciting the people to revolt, it is well that 
 the native population, not increasing itself, should be 
 convinced that the number of new arrivals makes a suc¬ 
 cessful insurrection impossible. 
 
102 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 THE MARKET. 
 
 What a goodly prospect spreads around ! 
 
 She scatters plenty with unsparing hand. 
 
 Rich is thy soil, and merciful thy clime. 
 
 Thomson’s Seasons. 
 
 It is an interesting sight to the newly-arrived Euro¬ 
 pean to see Arabs and Kabyles coming to market on 
 camels, mules, and asses, laden with the products of a 
 soil which yields two, or even three harvests in the year, 
 and not only supplies Algiers with good things at low 
 prices, but allows the surplus to be sent to many cities 
 
 in Eui ope, the export not perceptibly diminishing the 
 resources of the land. 
 
 Four steamei s leave Algiers weekly, taking with them 
 as part of theii cargo large quantities of produce from 
 these lich provinces, which were once the granaries of 
 ancient Rome; yet an inexhaustible store, enough to 
 load a fleet of such vessels, always remains in the market¬ 
 place. 
 
 The cost of transport to Marseilles, over 600 miles of 
 
THE MARKET. 
 
 103 
 
 sea, causes vegetables, game, &c., to arrive in Europe too 
 dear to make a larger export profitable. When sent 
 afterwards to distant places in the interior, such as Pans, 
 Vienna, &c.,—losing much of their freshness and flavour 
 they become dearer still, and can be sold only to the 
 rich. So that no encouragement is given for a largei 
 exportation, especially as in autumn and spring the 
 South of France and Italy can furnish many of the same 
 articles at a cheaper rate, the sea voyage not having to 
 be paid for. 
 
 The three middle months of winter are consequently 
 those when the largest shipments are made. At this 
 time the natives, and some of the Europeans although 
 they have these delicacies very cheap—lament that so 
 much goes away i, for, as they say, things would cost 
 
 still less, if fewer people eat them ! 
 
 In Algeria cultivation is increasing and improving, so 
 that the resources of the soil are developed from year to 
 year. Thus it is not likely that prices will rise ; the 
 Algerines, and the strangers who are fortunate enough to 
 enjoy their dinners on the spot, have therefore no occa¬ 
 sion to alarm themselves about the future of trade. 
 
 If Africa had been united to Europe the case would 
 have been different; then indeed, train after train would 
 have taken away vast quantities of these luxuries, and 
 Algeria would long ago have been as dear as the neigh¬ 
 bouring continent. . 
 
 There are market-places which may be called pictu¬ 
 resque. That of Valencia in Spain, and the Piazza delle 
 Erbe in Verona, Italy — with its elegant architectural 
 surroundings— may be so designated but we have seen 
 none so well furnished with the varied productions of 
 nature as that of Algieis. 
 
104 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 Before entering it, we may remark that the people 
 who sell, and whose different costumes enliven the scene, 
 are of many nationalities—Arabs, Kabyles, French,’ 
 Spaniards, and Maltese—all talking and gesticulating, 
 each shouting out the merits of what he has to dispose 
 of, make a perfect Babel as to lansfuacre 
 
 The market-place is a square, with shops under ar¬ 
 cades aiound, in which are sold butchers’ meat, game_ 
 
 snipes, woodcocks, &c.,—poultry, groceries and the like ; 
 the never-failing fountain throwing up water in the 
 middle. Here are to be had in winter all, and more than 
 all, that summer produces in the North : fresh eggs, new 
 potatoes, green peas, asparagus, French-beans, cauliflow¬ 
 ers, artichokes, &c., in short, every kind of vegetable is 
 thrown together in profusion. Some of them, such as 
 artichokes and native asparagus, are simply upset from 
 
 carts, the load of delicacies remaining in a heap on the 
 ground ! 
 
 Branches of orange blossoms, garden and wild flow¬ 
 ers—many of them exotics on the other side of the Medi¬ 
 terranean waft fragrance around, and give the square 
 the appearance of a flower-show, whilst they impart fresh¬ 
 ness to the scene which, under the blue sky, is novel and 
 delightful. 
 
 Delicious fruits, piled up on every side, add brighter 
 colours to the verdant display of vegetables. Some idea 
 may be formed of the great variety and quantity of 
 fruit sold in Algiers from the fact that, within the three pro¬ 
 vinces are the climates and soil favourable to that of the 
 North and South; thus apples, pears, and cherries, which 
 require a colder temperature, grow on the high table¬ 
 lands, whilst on or near the littoral are produced oranges, 
 
THE MARKET. 
 
 105 
 
 bananas, figs, and pomegranates, the oases of the Sahara 
 
 furnishing dates, tamarinds, &c. 
 
 Colour, and contrast of colours—in perfection are 
 the charming privileges of the South ! We see them 
 everywhere ; in the streets, where the primaries are re¬ 
 presented in the dress of the people ; in the country, 
 where nature displays them on every side, in the deep 
 foliage of the trees, the colour of the ground, the birds 
 in the air, the tints of the sky, and the blue of the sea. 
 They are present throughout creation, but in Southern 
 climes all is richer, deeper, and moie intense. 
 
 Life—for the poor man especially—is more enjoyable 
 and is most enjoyed in the South : the sun, the beneficent 
 and impartial sun, warms and brings forth all that feeds 
 
 him. 
 
 We have heard of an English merchant who had 
 made a fortune in Sicily, but it gave him no pleasure 
 where the lazzaroni get for nothing a luxury wealth 
 cannot purchase—a fine climate. Of what use was his 
 money in Italy where the poorest peasant shared this 
 privilege in common with himself? He therefore left 
 the country in disgust because he was not envied for 
 his riches, and returned to England where, he thanked 
 God, money can buy comforts which cannot be had with¬ 
 out it. 
 
io6 
 
 ALGERIA AS 11 IS. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 CLIMATE. 
 
 ^ennft £5u bag £anb/ iro bie (Htronen blufjert/ 
 3ni bunfien Saub bie ©olborangen glufy’n? 
 ^ennfl £)u eg trotyl/ babjin/ ba^tn! —Gothe. 
 
 The climate of Algiers in winter is temperate, and, 
 compared with that of Italy, it may be called a dry 
 climate even at this season. A very simple but decided 
 proof is that salt never becomes damp, as it almost 
 always is on the South of Europe. There are no 
 mosquitoes in Algiers, a plague which is the con¬ 
 sequence of a warm humid atmosphere; the absence of 
 this detestable insect is another indication of dryness and 
 salubrity. 
 
 The littoral is free from venomous reptiles ; if there 
 be any, they are harmless. In the Sahara the vipcres a 
 comes and scorpions are dangerous. Pestilential and 
 
 epidemical diseases have—at least in modern times_ 
 
 never taken any strong hold of places on the coast. 
 Visitations of cholera have been rare, and the seaports 
 have suffered little on these occasions. 
 
 Some of the French guide-books call winter in Algiers 
 4 fa saison pluvieuse .’ Everything is relative. Algiers can 
 
CLIMATE. 
 
 107 
 
 be called rainy only when the necessary and refreshing 
 showers, which fall at intervals between September and 
 April, make it wet in comparison with the surnmei 
 months, during which it seldom rains, abundant dews sup¬ 
 plying its place. When it does rain it often comes down 
 in torrents of short duration, what is called a spell of bad 
 
 weather being almost unknown. 
 
 A climate which is at the same time moist and warm 
 being considered more beneficial for a particular class of 
 invalids, there may be a wish to accommodate matters 
 when that of Algiers is called damp. It is the interest 
 of the inhabitants to induce strangers to choose this city 
 for their winter quarters, as it is natural for rival ‘ stations 
 hivernalcs ’ in the South of France and Italy to extol 
 their own attractions. Whether it be favourable 01 
 prejudicial to consumptive subjects, winter in Algiers is 
 generally dry and bracing, although only moderately 
 cold. It is however advisable on fine days to be on our 
 guard against the seductions of the African sun ; gentle¬ 
 men as well as ladies ought to carry a parasol. 
 
 The weather becomes cooler in the afternoon, from 
 4 o’clock, and those who are not used to what may be 
 called summer in winter will do well to dress warmly 
 after this hour, even if they do not notice any very per¬ 
 ceptible change in the temperatuie. 
 
 Algiers from its situation—which we have already 
 described—is well protected from the north winds. 
 
 During several winters we have passed here, we have 
 found that it rains mostly at night; whether this is 
 caused by the power of the sun during the day, 01 
 whether the fact can be accounted for in some other 
 way, we do not know, we merely state what may per- 
 
io8 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 haps have been accidental, but certainly is not imagi¬ 
 nary. 
 
 Eight months of the year—from the beginning of 
 October to the end of May—the weather is delightful, 
 being neithei too hot nor too cold. There is no neces¬ 
 sity for hies, although every room has a fireplace, 
 which people of European parentage, but who are born 
 lieie, sometimes make use of. The country is green, 
 flowers bloom, birds sing, all nature rejoices in life and 
 coloui, whilst, frost and snow being never seen, it is 
 scarcely possible to believe that it is winter. 
 
 When we say that the comparative dryness of the 
 climate of Algiers makes it less suited to patients suffer- 
 ing fiom phthisis than places which are warm and 
 damp, like Pisa and other towns in Italy, we only repeat 
 what is the opinion of some medical men. As for our¬ 
 selves, we cannot imagine that so uniform a temperature 
 can be prejudicial to any class of invalids. 
 
 Consumption is unknown to the Kabyles and Arabs, 
 who live in the country and only come to town occa¬ 
 sionally ; but the Moors, who lead a sedentary life in 
 shops, seldom going outside the gates of the city, some¬ 
 times fall victims to it. 
 
 In Algeria taken as a whole—as much rain is said 
 to fall as in Paris. It does not descend so often ; but, 
 as it pours down more heavily at shorter intervals, the 
 statement may be true ; particularly as it rains much 
 more in the interior than it does on the littoral, where 
 the capital is situated. In Algiers itself, weeks often 
 pass in winter during which the city and the country 
 around it are under a canopy of blue sky. When a 
 change comes, the weather soon takes up again, often 
 
CLIMA TE. 
 
 109 
 
 on the same day ; and, during the pauses, unlike the 
 breaks of a Northern clime, the sun reappears in all its 
 brilliancy, drying the streets and roads in a few hours. 
 There is a great difference between the quantity of 
 water which is required for vegetation and the constant 
 damp atmosphere occasioned by frequent and lasting 
 rain. 
 
 The climate of Algiers is very dissimilar from that of 
 Italy. We know that beautiful and interesting country 
 well —from end to end, and from sea to sea, having lived 
 there during several consecutive years, and have often 
 visited it since. 
 
 In Algiers the climate is more equal than that of the 
 Italian peninsula, where the transitions from hot to cold 
 are more sudden and severe, a chain of mountains 
 running longitudinally through it, whilst the tramontana 
 and sirocco seem to be always in contention which shall 
 be master of the situation. 
 
 Thus the climate of Italy is generally either damp or 
 windy, as the north or the enervating south wind pre¬ 
 dominates. The latter, which comes from the African 
 desert, is dry and warm, and in winter is not unpleasant 
 in Algiers. In crossing the sea it takes the humidity of 
 the water and, as water does not cool at sunset so 
 quickly as land, the air on coming in contact with the 
 former element whilst it retains much of its own warmth, 
 adds to it the moisture it attracts in passing the Medi 
 terranean. 
 
 In this condition it is carried over to Italy where, im¬ 
 pregnated with damp, the overcharged atmosphere dis¬ 
 charges itself in rain. 
 
 The mistral or tramontana—the Northern blast 
 
no 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 which Europe sends to Africa—being a cold wind, does 
 not attract humidity from the sea in a like degree, so 
 that it arrives at these shores as a healthy breeze, 
 bringing rain only when it takes a westerly direction. 
 
 Those who have passed winters in Italy and Algiers 
 cannot have failed to notice the contrast between the 
 climates of Rome, Naples, Florence, and other places in 
 Southern and Central Italy, and that of the Algerian 
 capital. In the first-named towns it is, as a rule, rainy, 
 cold, or windy ; very fine weather without any one of 
 these drawbacks being the rare exception from Decem¬ 
 ber to February. Whereas in Algiers the exceptions 
 are rain and cold, if 48° Fahrenheit in shade at sunrise— 
 the lowest degree quicksilver descends to—can be 
 called cold. 
 
 The advantage winter in Italy possesses over this 
 season in more Northern climes is rather its short dura¬ 
 tion than its mildness and uniformity of temperature. 
 During the three middle months it has many of the 
 characteristics of the same period in England, the princi¬ 
 pal difference being that, when it snows in the North, 
 if generally rains in Italy : still it is something to have 
 autumn carried half through November, and to welcome 
 spring in the middle of February. Yet more delightful 
 is it in Algiers where, properly speaking, there is no 
 winter at all. 
 
 As no information in regard to weather can be so prac¬ 
 tical and intelligible as a statement of its character and 
 changes during an average season, we have taken note of 
 each day, from the time of our last arrival up to when 
 we left. Not to enter into unnecessary detail, we shall 
 notice especially only the periods at which fine weather 
 
CLIMATE. 
 
 hi 
 
 was succeeded by bad and vice-versa , describing the 
 intervening fluctuations by a few general observations. 
 The temperature in Europe on particular days having 
 been published from time to time in the ‘ Moniteur de 
 l’Algerie/ we also shall register it, as well as the corre¬ 
 sponding number of degrees on the same days in Algiers, 
 in order that the reader may be able to judge of the 
 cold and warmth of this climate in winter, as compared 
 with that of places on the other side of the Mediterra¬ 
 nean. We adopt the Fahrenheit scale as being more 
 familiar to English readers. 
 
 We arrived in Algiers on November io, 1873. From that day- 
 up to December 1, we had a continuation of fine autumnal weather, 
 more delightful than the excessive heat of summer anywhere. The 
 warmth at noon during these three weeks averaged about 66° 
 Fahrenheit outside, in shade, the mornings and evenings being 
 cooler. 
 
 On December 1 a change came, and up to the 14th we had 
 rain more or less on ten days of this fortnight, the other four being 
 fine; it was not cold, and on seven of the ten rainy days we had 
 intervals of sunshine; the other three brought rain which lasted 
 from morning to night. 
 
 During these two weeks of broken weather in Algiers it was 
 very bad in Europe. In Rome, for instance, they had on some 
 days only 37 0 , whilst it was 56° here. 
 
 On the 15th the weather again settled, and continued as beau¬ 
 tiful as it had been the first three weeks till December 26, 1873; on 
 this day the thermometer indicated 6o° at 8 a.m. in Algiers, in 
 Florence 39 0 , Paris 37 0 , Constantinople 33 0 . 
 
 This fine weather lasted up to January 4 of the new year. It 
 was followed by four days during which it was very variable. We 
 had rain and sunshine by turns up to the 8th. From this time to 
 the end of the month the weather was remarkably fine and genial, 
 with the exception of one rainy day, and some showers on three of 
 the others. 
 
 On January 16 the temperature in Algiers was 6o° outside in 
 
112 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 shade. On the same day and hour at Palermo it was 51° in Florence 
 46°, in Rome 37° 
 
 On January 26 at Algiers the degrees were 58°, at Palermo 55 0 , 
 in Naples 53 0 , and in Rome 48°. 
 
 From February 1 to 28 the weather was delightful, with the 
 exception of five days, on two of which it rained a little before 
 8 o’clock in the morning, the rest of the day being fine; and three 
 others, on which we had one or two showers. There was only one 
 really bad day. 
 
 On the 23rd of this month, at 8 a.m., in Algiers the thermometer 
 marked 57 0 , Naples 45 0 , and Rome 38°. 
 
 March opened with three rainy and windy days, followed by a 
 week of fine weather; to which succeeded three showery and com¬ 
 paratively cold days. At sunrise on the coldest of these we had 
 49 0 , and 6o° at noon. From this time to the end of the month the 
 weather was magnificent. 
 
 On March 6 at 8 A.M. the temperature in Algiers was 51 0 , 
 Palermo 42 0 , Rome 35 0 , and in Florence it was below freezing 
 point! 
 
 On the 13th in Algiers we had 51 0 , on the same day at Naples 
 it was 38°, and in Rome 35° 
 
 Speaking generally, the temperature in winter on the 
 littoral may be put down at 48° in shade on the coldest 
 days at sunrise, and 6o° in shade at noon of the same 
 days. At sunrise in fine weather, the thermometer out¬ 
 side the house, in shade, usually indicates about 55 0 , and 
 at noon 67°. 
 
 The winter 1872 to 1873 was finer than that of 
 1873-4, which last may be taken as an average one. 
 We had in the former no rain before spring, fine days 
 succeeding each other during the whole of Novem¬ 
 ber, December, and January, with heavy dews at night. 
 About the beginning of February a change came, and 
 the spring of 1873 was cold and rainy for this country. 
 During the three months of delightful weather in Algiers, 
 prayers were put up in the churches in England for a 
 
CLIMATE. 
 
 ”3 
 
 cessation of rain ; a part of Lancashire was under water, 
 and much damage was caused by the floods in different 
 parts of the country. 
 
 As a rule, the first rain after summer falls towards 
 the end of September or the beginning of October. 
 The middle of the season—November, December, and 
 the first half of January—is frequently, we may say 
 generally, the finest part of an Algerian winter. Some 
 heavy showers usually come down in February and 
 March, and these are almost always the coldest months. 
 In April and May, with the exception of a dull day now 
 and then, the weather is balmy and very fine. Of 
 course there are years when they sustain the capricious 
 character given to them in Europe. 
 
 The degrees of heat in Algiers during the three 
 warmest months of summer, July, August, and Sep¬ 
 tember, may have little interest for our readers ; we 
 shall therefore only say that it is at this period greatly 
 tempered by the sea-breezes, and those who like Algeria 
 may prolong their residence in the capital, or other 
 large towns on the coast, till the end of June, or even 
 later, without being more inconvenienced by hot weather 
 than they would be in many places in the North of 
 Europe : this is certainly true of the season just past. 
 Living in Salzburg—which is a delightful summer resi¬ 
 dence—we received a newspaper from Algiers daily, in 
 which the degrees of warmth were always given. Com¬ 
 paring the temperature with Salzburg and Vienna, we 
 found that we had in Austria a greater number of days 
 on which the heat was excessive than were put down 
 in the statement we received from Algiers, where it 
 was very hot only when the wind came from the desert. 
 
 I 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 114 
 
 Above all, the weather was during the whole summer 
 more uniform—about 82° at 2 o’clock P.M. outside in 
 shade—in Algiers, than it was with us, for we had many- 
 very cold days, and in August the temperature was not 
 higher than 51 0 during a whole week. 
 
 The sirocco very rarely lasts more than three days, 
 and it generally ceases to blow after twenty-four hours. 
 
 It is well known that in places very far north, as 
 Moscow and others, exceptionally hot weather is often 
 intense. The cold days we have occasionally here— 
 Salzburg—at this season, cause the average heat to be 
 less than it is at Algiers, where such exceptions in sum¬ 
 mer are unknown. 
 
 During fine weather the dews are so copious after 
 sunset in Algeria, that in the morning one would suppose 
 it had rained. 
 
 The climate of the interior, the high table-lands, and 
 the Sahara, is very different from that of the coast ; but 
 as this may also be a matter of indifference to many, 
 we shall not enter further into the subject than to men¬ 
 tion that snow sometimes falls in winter at Medeah, 
 Milianah, and other places in high situations not far 
 from Algiers, although frost in these elevated districts 
 is rare, and when it does occur mercury descends only 
 just below freezing point. In summer it is much hotter 
 in such places than it is on the littoral. 
 
 Instances of longevity are common amongst both 
 the natives and Europeans, the doubtful hundred years 
 being frequently passed. 
 
 An old French lady, who has lived in Algiers since 
 the conquest in 1830, told us that the climate is par¬ 
 ticularly adapted for aged people. Her own hale person 
 
CLIMATE. 
 
 "5 
 
 bore witness to what she said, for never had we seen a 
 more healthy-looking old woman at eighty-five. She 
 had with her a fine handsome young man, her descend¬ 
 ant in the third generation. 
 
 Speaking of Algeria with the respectable prejudices 
 which she had preserved from the time of the invasion, 
 she said : ‘ It is a paradise inhabited by demons !’ This 
 agreeable and venerable lady—whom we met acciden¬ 
 tally in one of our country rambles soon after our first 
 visit to Algeria—insisted, with the politeness of her 
 nation, which in her early days was polite par excellence , 
 on showing us many beautiful spots in the neighbour¬ 
 hood ; walking and climbing with a vigour which fully 
 sustained what she said of the climate. 
 
 We met with another enthusiast in an old man of 
 ninety years—the greater part of them summer—whom 
 we saw working in a garden. He was quite a spoiled 
 child of old Time. 
 
 Being near some aloes, we asked him if it were true 
 that this prodigious plant died as soon as it flowered. 
 To which he replied : ‘ Well, I know nothing about that; 
 mais qu’est ce que cela nous fait a nous pourvu que 
 nous vivions.’ 
 
 Telling us a bit of his history, he said he had been 
 through the wars of the first Napoleon, and had lived 
 long in Algiers. The climate was however the theme 
 on which the veteran most delighted to expatiate. 
 Concluding a eulogy on its charms, he exclaimed : ‘ If I 
 could take it in my hand ’—closing his fingers, but 
 leaving a hollow which was figuratively supposed to 
 contain the genial climate of Algeria—‘ I would kiss it/ 
 which he did, metaphorically at least. 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 ii 6 
 
 The old fellow was right; man without sun is only 
 half alive, he droops and saddens like everything in 
 nature. In winter commend us to the land where the 
 glorious orb of day brightly shines, where the trees and 
 grass preserve their green, and the earth yields its fruits. 
 
 As climate is a subject of interest to all, and is a 
 serious question to many, we hope this notice on that of 
 Algiers may be acceptable to our readers. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 FIRST EXCURSION.—ALGIERS TO MEDEAH. 
 
 journey into foreign lands, for God’s earth is wide .—Story of the Two 
 Princes. 
 
 Chi va lontan dalla sua patria, vede 
 Cose da quel che gia credea, lontane ; 
 
 Che narrandole poi, non se gli crede, 
 
 E stimato bugiardo ne rimane : 
 
 Che ’1 sciocco vulgo non gli vuol dar fede, 
 
 Se non le vede e tocca chiare e piane.— Ariosto. 
 
 DELIGHTFUL excursions may be made along the littoral, 
 
 and into the interior of Algeria. 
 
 The capital, placed about equidistant from Oran, near 
 
 the frontier of Marocco, to the West, and to B6ne on the 
 Eastern boundary of the French possessions, is an ex¬ 
 cellent starting-point, offering great facilities for tours 
 to interesting places, such as Coleah, Tipaza, Cherchell, 
 Tenez, Mostaganem, and Oran, on the one side, and 
 Dellys, Bougie, Djidjelli, Bone, and Constantine on the 
 
 other. 
 
 From the sea to the Sahara fine roads radiate fan¬ 
 like in all directions ; at one time passing over well- 
 cultivated land ; at another running through wild 
 mountain passes, from which they emerge on extensive 
 
IIS ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 plains ; now skirting the margins of lakes and the 
 borders of rivers, they enter dark forests, or ascend 
 some high table-land, opening to magnificent prospects 
 over an African landscape. 
 
 Such are the general features of the country over 
 which we shall take the reader. 
 
 Although our excursions will extend to the limits of 
 the provinces east and west, and to the oasis of Biskra 
 in the Sahara, they will present but an incomplete survey 
 of the interior of Algeria, to intersect which in every 
 direction, and to describe all that is to be seen, would 
 be inconsistent with the object of this work. Thus we 
 leave the mysteries of the Grande Kabylie and other 
 romantic ground to the imagination and the enterprise 
 of the traveller, satisfied if what we narrate excites in 
 him a desire to see more. 
 
 The characteristics of the three provinces into which 
 Algeria is divided may be classified as follows. 
 
 That of Algiers, which is the smallest, enjoys the 
 most temperate and equal climate. It is the only one 
 which strangers—not engaged in trade—make their re¬ 
 sidence. In it is the capital of the colony, the seat of 
 European refinement and comfort, which are here 
 united to the picturesqueness of Arab life. A part of 
 the Grande Kabylie being included within its limits, this 
 province has much of the wild nature of that fine dis- 
 tiict, whilst for the number of Roman remains—Julia 
 Cmsarea one of the most interesting being amongst 
 them it is second only to that of Constantine. 
 
 The province of Oran is the best cultivated and, 
 owing to the railway which is open from its capital— 
 
ALGIERS TO MEDEAIL 
 
 119 
 
 Oran—to Algiers, the facilities for travelling are greater 
 than in the other two. The Spanish residents here aie 
 so numerous that they form a not inconsiderable part ol 
 
 the whole population. 
 
 The province of Constantine, the laigest o t le t nee, 
 is the most wildly picturesque, both as regards tie 
 grand scenery of the country, the primitive character ot 
 its inhabitants, and the peculiar appearance of the towns 
 and villages. Its unique capital, the ancient Cirta, bui 
 on a high inaccessible rock, is the most singular city m 
 Algeria, perhaps in the world. This province has moie 
 Roman ruins scattered over it than even that of A gieis^ 
 The extraordinary temple of Medracen, the luins 01 
 Tebessa and Lambessa, are here to be seen ; t eu 
 arches, temples, and gates still standing. It as a so 
 
 the greatest number of inhabitants. 
 
 As few of the English who pass the winter m 
 
 Algiers leave the metropolis for the interior, tie 
 agrements of these departments are almost unknown to 
 
 them. , 
 
 Following the travellers’ good old rule, we start early 
 
 on our excursion. An hour after sunrise the train 
 
 arrives at Hussein-Dey, a village near the sea— which is 
 
 called after the last of the Pachas; the one who pushed 
 
 European forbearance too far, and m a single moment 
 
 caused the cup to overflow which had been filling 01 
 
 centuries. _ 
 
 The finest views of Algiers are on this side. P rom 
 
 the beach at Hussein-Dey, in particular, it is seen to 
 
 great advantage. When approached in a vessel the 
 
 town, being directly opposite, does not appear to s an 
 
120 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 out into the water so much as it really does. Seen from 
 this spot the Moorish city seems to rise like a fairy 
 creation from the waves. Those who wish to take a 
 general view of the picturesque capital of Algiers will 
 find no more favourable point to paint from. In the 
 foreground are some aloes and cacti, which harmonise 
 well with the picture ; and, if the artist retreat a step or 
 two after he has sketched in the background and middle 
 distance, he may bring in some palm-trees, and often a 
 stray Arab on his camel, passing along the highroad, 
 which lies between the Jardin d'acclimatation and the 
 seashore. 
 
 The trees and flowers in this garden grow on the 
 field where a sanguinary battle was fought in 1541, 
 when Charles V. landed here with an army of 25,000 
 men, which was signally defeated by the old enemies of 
 Spain. Fernando Cortes, afterwards the celebrated 
 conqueror of Mexico, was present at this engagement. 
 
 At a more recent period (1775), another Spanish 
 force, under the command of Count O’Reilly, was van¬ 
 quished not far from the same ground. 
 
 After stopping at several stations we came to Blidah. 
 The distance from Algiers, only 38 English miles, occu¬ 
 pies two hours, for the trains do not go at more than half 
 the rate they travel in France ; but to compensate for 
 lack of speed, the carriages are unusually roomy and 
 agreeable. 
 
 The principal hotel in Blidah—the Hotel d’Orient, is 
 a fair specimen of those in the provincial towns of 
 Algeria; and before we proceed farther, we may 
 mention that the best hotels in the interior are very 
 good. The best hotel is always the one at which the 
 
ALGIERS TO ME DEAL/. 
 
 121 
 
 French officers breakfast and dine. Most, even of the 
 small towns, have a garrison, with a resident general or 
 commandant , according to the importance of the place 
 in a military point of view, and as all the officers, from 
 the general downwards, take their meals at the hotel— 
 those of superior rank forming a party alone, the others 
 messing at a table together—it is the interest of the land¬ 
 lord to treat them well, that he may secure their patronage, 
 which they transfer to another house when not satisfied 
 with the one they usually visit. That which is fre¬ 
 quented by these gentlemen is a guarantee for good 
 living and prompt service, soldier fashion. The excel¬ 
 lence of the cuisine , the quality of the wines, and the 
 conviviality of the table, are matters of importance to 
 men who lead rather a monotonous life in country 
 quarters. 
 
 Thus it is that such houses—even in villages—are 
 generally well provided with the choice of all that is to 
 be had at the market, not only on account of the officers 
 and civil officials, but for the repute their favour acquires 
 for the hotel, which soon becomes known as the first in 
 the place. 
 
 In regard to bedroom accommodation we must 
 sometimes ‘ rough it; ’ but the reasonable traveller will 
 overlook the smallness of the apartments and the simpli¬ 
 city of the furniture of a country inn, in consideration of 
 an excellent bed, and the good things of Algeria cooked 
 in the best kitchen in the world, all of which are to be 
 had in the most out-of-the-way places throughout the 
 three provinces. 
 
 Blidah, called ‘ the beautiful ’ by the Arabs, is de¬ 
 lightfully situated at the foot of the lower Atlas, in a 
 
122 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 grove of orange and lemon trees. The modern part is 
 well built, the houses are high, the streets wide, and one 
 of the squares, that on which the Hotel d’Orient stands, 
 is spacious and attractive, with its fountain spouting 
 water in the middle. Altogether the impression made 
 on arriving is that we are in a lively and open town. 
 
 The native quarter presents the usual characteristics, 
 with more animation than is generally remarked in Arab 
 communities. 
 
 Public gaidens at Blidah are almost a superfluity, 
 wheie the country around is a garden on a larger scale. 
 Heie the very hedges are composed of pomegranate, 
 orange, and lemon bushes, mixed with double roses. 
 Plantations of orange, fig, olive and other trees give to 
 the environs of the town the appearance of a vast orchard. 
 We have never seen soil better cultivated nor labour 
 employed on more varied and beautiful productions. 
 
 No one who goes to Blidah must fail to visit the Bois 
 Sac?e or sacied grove ; a name given to a wood of olive 
 trees near the town, and which, for the Mahometans, is 
 hallowed by the tomb of a venerated Marabout—Sidi 
 Mohammed Blidi—who rests beneath a white Moorish 
 temple, appiopi lately placed under the old trees, which 
 keep it in perpetual twilight. There is something solemn 
 and impressive about the silent spot, where the light of 
 day is excluded by these centennial olives, which throw 
 a sombre shade over the grave of the Mussulman. Some 
 of these giants of the wood are as large as the oldest 
 oaks in England. 
 
 The olive is indigenous, and grows spontaneously in 
 Algeria ; wild or cultivated, it yields excellent oil. There 
 is scarcely any part of the colony where this productive 
 
ALGIERS TO MEDEAH. 
 
 123, 
 
 and useful tree does not spread its luxuriant branches in 
 the sun, its dull green foliage often sheltering a whole 
 troop of Bedouins from the summer’s heat. The trunks, 
 of some exceptional specimens of this enormous vegeta¬ 
 tion measure from ten to eleven yards in circumference, 
 and those of which we are speaking have scarcely less 
 gigantic proportions. Such as we see in the South of 
 Europe convey no idea of the dimensions of their African 
 rivals. 
 
 From Blidah we look over the misty plain of the 
 Metidja which, from some peculiarity of the atmosphere, 
 resembles the sea. Across this imaginary water the 
 Tombeau de la Reine rises like a landmark, adding appa¬ 
 rent truth to the fanciful view; but, as we shall have an 
 opportunity of inspecting this mysterious monument on 
 our way to Tipaza, we shall say more about it when we 
 arrive at its base. 
 
 Across the country, on the table-land of the Sahel, 
 the town of Coleah looms, like the fantastic buildings of 
 a mirage. As night approaches this effect becomes 
 still more striking, and the illusion of the intervening 
 water yet more complete, for the lights in the old Arab 
 town may be taken for a beacon shining from cliffs on 
 some distant coast. We always liked and often re-visit 
 the orange-grown Blidah. 
 
 A short drive in an open carriage, on the road to 
 Medeah, takes us to one of the wonders of Algeria, the 
 famous Gorges de la Chiffa, a region of wild and roman¬ 
 tic beauty, such as we might expect to find far removed 
 from town or city, but which is only three hours from the 
 capital. Half an hour brought us to the entrance of 
 
124 
 
 ALGERIA AS II IS. 
 
 this famous pass. As we advance into the gorge the 
 character of the scenery begins to develope itself. Below 
 tipples like a brook or dashes along like a torrent, accord¬ 
 ing to the quantity of water which decends in cascades 
 from the lateral hills, the Ruisseau des Singes. 
 
 In Northern latitudes hr and pine-clad heights, white 
 with snow, look grand and imposing in winter. Here, 
 in Algeria, where vegetation of every kind is green and 
 flourishing at this season, softer tints colour the mountain 
 slopes, overgrown with wild olive, cedar, and carob trees, 
 whose delicate foliage, even near, lends to them some¬ 
 thing of the tender hues of distance. 
 
 As we proceed, enchanting scenes open out before us ; 
 at one moment precipitous rocks narrow the passage, 
 their height and the straitness of the gorge darkening 
 the way below, which in some places is only wide enough 
 for it and the livulet in the ravine to pass through. 
 From time to time the turn of an angle opens to a 
 broader part of the defile which, in contrast to the shade 
 
 from which we emerge, is seen in the full blaze of the 
 sun. 
 
 Beautiful as light and shade play about them are the 
 lilac or grey colours of the rocks, their crevices ingrown 
 with lentisk and ivy, wet by the sparkling water which 
 
 innumerable small falls spirt on them from the mountain 
 side. 
 
 Through this picturesque gorge before civilisation— 
 as unwelcome to the king of the Atlas as to the Arab— 
 marched along the macadamised road made by the 
 soldiers, many a stray lion passed on his way to the 
 littoral. 
 
 A much less formidable animal, but in his wild state 
 
ALGIERS TO MEDEA H. 
 
 125 
 
 one not uninteresting to Europeans, still frequents the 
 Chiffa. this is the monkey. Troops of them sometimes 
 come down from the heights to drink at the river, called 
 from that circumstance the Ruisseau des Singes. 
 
 Having oidered breakfast at the inn we took a stroll 
 amongst the fine scenery in the neighbourhood. We 
 had been there so often without seeing the monkeys that 
 yv c had begun to look upon the story as a myth, got up^ 
 to attiact people to the house. This time however we 
 veie 1 ewarded for our perseverance, for we saw great 
 numbers in the trees, jumping from branch to branch or 
 eating the fruit or leaves of such as they feed on. Like all 
 wild animals, even the ugly monkey looks much better in 
 the enjoyment of his natural liberty. Those we saw were 
 large, with skins and hair less coarse than their brethren 
 in confinement. Nothing is more amusing than the 
 antics and gambols of these half-human creatures, so 
 like man in the gravity of his face, and boys in their 
 hour of play. Besides those on the trees, we saw many 
 others in the ravine below, diverting themselves on the 
 banks of the river, where they formed a circle, the young 
 in the middle, with their elders sitting round. When they 
 perceived us the parents took the little ones on their 
 backs, and ran away with them up the rocks. Such was 
 the fiist sight we had of our remote and interesting 
 ancestors according to the Darwinian theory. 
 
 These apes are a feature and an attraction in this 
 part of the gorge. Even the reserved and cautious 
 English tourist gets so far excited and thrown off his 
 guard by the novelty, that he accosts people to whom 
 he has no letter of introduction with, ‘ Have you seen the 
 monkeys ? ’ 
 
126 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 When the first soldiers and colonists arrived in 
 Algeria the long-tailed inhabitants of la ChifFa, not used 
 to be disturbed in their solitudes, threw stones at the 
 invaders. 
 
 . Whilst watching the apes we observed something 
 moving in the underwood near the river, which we found 
 to be a hyena, the first we had seen out of the Zoological 
 Gardens. 
 
 Wild carnivorous animals sometimes penetrate into 
 this ravine, even now, when it is passed twice a day by 
 the public stage, and often by other carriages. As the 
 assertion may be called in question, we extract the 
 following from the ‘ Moniteur de 1 ’Algerie ’ of January 
 17th, 1874, in confirmation of our statement:— 
 
 ‘During the night of the 5th to the 6th of January, 
 a lion was seen roaming about the ravines and under¬ 
 wood of Oued-Mouzai'a and la Chififa. A hyena was 
 shot in the same place whilst eating a bait prepared for 
 the lion. The said was last seen in the Pass of the 
 Mouza'ia, near that of the Chififa, where he feeds on wild 
 boars, which are numerous in these parts : this danger¬ 
 ous guest has already devoured several oxen. A pan¬ 
 ther with its two young ones has for some time taken up 
 its quarters in the Oued Karakache in the same neigh¬ 
 bourhood, and several wild boars are known to have 
 fallen victims to its rapacity.’ 
 
 To return to what we saw ourselves. We were for¬ 
 tunate this day, for in the blue sky, high over the moun¬ 
 tains, soared a magnificent golden eagle. Its distended 
 wings must have measured some two yards from point 
 to point. Those who have not seen the king of birds 
 floating over grand and solitary scenes can form no con- 
 
ALGIERS TO MEDEAH. 
 
 127 
 
 ception how striking - it looks, and how greatly its 
 presence adds to nature, so much in harmony with the 
 imposing appearance of the mighty bird. 
 
 What a beautifier is liberty! How different from 
 the loid of the air is the captive eagle, moping crest¬ 
 fallen in a barred cage, with drooping wings and tar¬ 
 nished plumage ! 
 
 Some Arabs, who saw what we were looking at, 
 pointed out to us the mate of the bird above, the female 
 eagle, sitting on its eyry, made in front of a fissure of 
 the lock, a place chosen without care for concealment. 
 It seemed built there as if in defiance, full in the face of 
 man, the wanton destroyer—as often for sport as for 
 necessity of all that enjoys life and freedom. But he 
 would have been a bold fellow who had dared to con¬ 
 front those yellow eyes which were glaring at us across 
 the ravine. 
 
 An Englishman present asked one of the Arabs to 
 fetch him an egg, or a young one. The Kabyle was a 
 brave man, who—as the Arabs say—' f had killed his 
 lion,’ but he said something in Arabic to the Englishman 
 which we may translate freely by—‘ catch me ! ’ 
 
 Returning to the inn, where the monkeys were the 
 subject of conversation, we were told a curious story of 
 them. 
 
 A pedlai, who had women’s caps for sale, stopped 
 there one day to rest. After he had dined he laid him¬ 
 self down under a hedge for a nap, with his basket near 
 him. When he awoke, great was his consternation to 
 find it empty, and a troop of monkeys, each with a cap 
 on its head, grinning and gesticulating at him from the 
 trees. Before he could recover from his astonishment 
 
128 
 
 ALGERIA AS 77 IS. 
 
 they scampered off, led by an old ape, the patriarch of 
 the tribe, which had the poor pedlar’s hat on his head. 
 For the itinerant vender of caps it was no laughing 
 matter, as through this freak of the monkeys he lost 
 all his stock in trade. 
 
 Besides coming occasionally to drink at the river, 
 they sometimes arrive here as fugitives, when retreating 
 from the pursuit of wild animals of a less inoffensive 
 nature ; yet people may go many times to the Ruisseau 
 without being able to see them. In some other parts of 
 Algeria monkeys are in great numbers, and it is extra¬ 
 ordinary to meet with them in the Gorges de la Chiffa, 
 only because it is so near the capital. 
 
 The rugged side of the mountain behind the inn— 
 where a fall of water from the heights above rushes 
 precipitately through African vegetation—will repay the 
 ascent made by a path which follows the windings of the 
 rocks. 
 
 The inn itself—kept by a Spaniard—beyond its fine 
 situation in one of the most beautiful parts of the gorge, 
 is remarkable for nothing but its bad breakfasts and 
 dinners, which are charged double what is paid for good 
 ones at the French hotels. 
 
 As we were going farther, we here sent back the 
 open carriage which we had engaged at Blidah, that we 
 might enjoy the scenery more, and be able to pass a few 
 hours at this spot, before the diligence for Medeah should 
 come up. When it arrived we took our seats in the 
 coupe, and had got about half way through the pass, our 
 seven horses galloping merrily along, when a huge piece 
 of rock as big as the diligence—a fragment of stone 
 which had for ages remained high and immovable—was 
 
ALGIERS TO MEDEAII 
 
 129 
 
 suddenly detached from the mountain side, and came 
 bounding and rolling down, crushing trees and all that 
 stood in its way, till it fell with an awful crash on the 
 road, a few feet before our three leading horses, which 
 stopped as if their feet had been riveted to the ground. 
 If only two seconds had been added to the countless 
 years during which this rock had kept its place—defying 
 storms and ram—it would have fallen upon us, smashing 
 our coach like the egg of an ostrich, or dashing it over 
 the precipice into the ravine, and we should, after crossing 
 the stormy Gulf of Lyons in safety, have been drowned 
 
 m the rippling rivulet below, and this book could never 
 have told the tale. 
 
 A Mahometan, who was with us in the coupe, called 
 it destiny. ‘ The stone,’ he said, ‘ was from all eternity 
 pieoidained to fall, and to stop just where it did; exactly 
 one yai d before the feet of the three leading greys, when 
 
 they started back like horses affrighted on the brink of a 
 precipice.’ 
 
 For ourselves, we thanked Providence for our escape, 
 whether it was predestined or not. 
 
 The diligence was completely blockaded ; and, being 
 unable to proceed, the conductor had to wait till some 
 men could be procured to hew in pieces the rock which 
 obsti ucted the way. As we found this would be a 
 business of time, we profited by the opportunity, and 
 set off on foot through the rest of the gorge. 
 
 When we say we in these pages it is not always the 
 great we of literature; ours is often the sociable little 
 pronoun which represents the author and his wife. 
 
 N° hay mal quepor bien no venga. The accident which 
 caused the detention, however disagreeable to those who 
 
 K 
 
i 3 o 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 were in haste to get on, offered us the rare chance of a 
 walk in this romantic and solitary region. It was indeed 
 a privilege to be alone in the African gorge, surrounded 
 by its magnificent scenery and strange vegetation, with 
 the picturesque forms of the mountains and rocks lising 
 before us, the river murmuring below, and wild birds 
 floating in the air above. 
 
 Nothing was wanting to complete the picture but the 
 presence of a lion which, having dined well, might, in a 
 grood humour, have been taking his siesta on the load- 
 
 side! 
 
 Near the end of the defile is a small inn, where 
 the diligence stops for dinner. It stands quite alone in 
 these solitudes, unci venta en despoblado , as the Spaniards 
 
 call a public-house so situated. 
 
 Arrived here, we related to a party of zouaves and 
 the people of the house what had happened. In an 
 out-of-the-way place any news is welcome, so ours 
 created quite a sensation. We were made to relate the 
 accident over and over again, as if we had been the 
 heroes of a great adventure. At last the stage, whose 
 conductor had found men to clear the way, came up. 
 
 For a little road-side inn, far removed from town or 
 village, an excellent dinner was served up, which sent us 
 
 refreshed and rejoicing on our way. 
 
 Besides a spotless table-cloth and napkins, there are 
 always three things to be had at a French dinner, how¬ 
 ever humble or unpretending it may be ; good table wine, 
 
 good bread, and good cooking. 
 
 As the road had continued to rise since we entered 
 the p-orere. we had attained a considerable height when 
 we left it for the open country. The view which spread 
 
ALGIERS TO MEDEAJT. 
 
 l o l 
 
 out before us on issuing from the defile being over an 
 extensive plateau of undulating ground—hills and moun¬ 
 tains bounding the horizon—was very striking as con¬ 
 trasted with the narrow pass we had just left. 
 
 After a winding ascent of three hours we reached 
 the heights, on which Medeah would have looked well, 
 had it occupied so conspicuous a position, instead of 
 being built on the Southern slope of the Nador, where 
 nothing is seen of the town till we enter its gate. 
 
 Those who approach Medeah from Boghar in the 
 opposite direction see it to greater advantage. 
 
132 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 MEDEAH TO COIEAH. 
 
 Sweet is the vintage, when the showering grapes 
 In Bacchanal profusion reel to earth, 
 
 Purple and gushing .—Don Juan. 
 
 El clarin sono: guerreros, 
 
 Marchad, blandiendo las lanzas 
 
 Sobre el relinchante bruto 
 
 Que el freno espumando tasca.— Florian. 
 
 Medeah, which was called Mediae or Medias by the 
 Romans—being situated equidistant from two other 
 cities—was a place of some importance under their 
 government. 
 
 The French obtained possession of the town in 1830, 
 but kept it only a few days, after which it was taken and 
 re-taken several times, the celebrated Abd-el-Kader 
 being one of its last defenders, till in 1840 Medeah was 
 finally added to the conquests made in the province of 
 Algiers, and since then it has been strongly fortified. 
 
 In Medeah we miss the Moorish architecture, which 
 is always pleasing even in the humblest buildings, whilst 
 it oives character to the rest of the town. Notwithstand- 
 ing its European look—for there is scarcely an Arab 
 
MEDEAH TO COLEAH. 
 
 133 
 
 house to be seen—we never saw so many natives walking 
 about as there are at Medeah, where they form crowds 
 in all the streets and squares, such as we see in villages 
 on market days, or during a fair. 
 
 When we come to a town standing on a height, from 
 which it is probable. that there is a fine prospect, our 
 first object is to see it. Here we were not disappointed. 
 The views from near the wall, looking towards the range 
 of the higher Atlas, are grand and diversified. 
 
 Vegetation at Medeah, under the opposing influences 
 of a Southern latitude and an altitude of 3,000 feet above 
 the sea, partakes of two different climates. Orange, 
 lemon, and olive-trees are no longer seen; whilst, in 
 their stead, pears, apples, and other Northern fruits grow 
 in the gardens and orchards. 
 
 Looking across the beautiful table-land of the Tell, 
 we see holm-oaks, cedars, and other trees which represent 
 the vegetation of the South; whilst the purple tints 
 thrown over the mountains and the warm colours which 
 pervade the landscape show that we are approaching the 
 Saharian regions. 
 
 Those who find no pleasure in the contemplation of 
 nature may not care to have such scenes set before them, 
 but to the man—and especially to the traveller—of taste 
 we shall be doing una cosa grata in pointing them out. 
 
 Notwithstanding the height at which it is situated 
 Medeah is a famous wine district, although there is not 
 so much produced here as on the Sahel. It is cold in 
 winter, but the temperature is not so low as in some of 
 the best wine departments of France, whilst in summer 
 it is hot and dry, a climate well suited for the vine. 
 Amongst other wines at Medeah is one of a superior 
 
134 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 kind, possessing the quality of keeping for years, which 
 is not the virtue of the usual light table wines. 
 
 Medeah is well supplied with the necessaries of life ; 
 and, as it is a small town, and has no larger one near 
 enough to draw away its superfluities, living is cheap. 
 The Arabs, who have an allegory or a legend for every¬ 
 thing, say that the Spirit of Evil, roaming about for 
 victims, once entered Medeah. Passing up the streets, 
 the Evil Eye saw abundance on every side till, turning 
 into the market, the great quantity of provisions and 
 produce of the soil which were displayed there made the 
 bad spirit despair of causing mischief where food was so 
 plentiful. Advancing farther, only a doctor and an ad¬ 
 vocate could be found who were dissatisfied—for the one 
 had no patients, and the other no clients. So the Evil 
 Genius left Medeah in disgust, quitting the town by the 
 gate opposite to the one by which it had entered, to 
 seek in large cities, amongst the poor and needy, the 
 poverty and discontent which lead to crime. 
 
 On one of the days we passed at Medeah we saw an 
 exercise of Arab military. The Spats, chiefs of tribes 
 or clans, have now subordinate commands in cavalry 
 regiments of native troops in the service of France. 
 Throughout Algeria, these officers form a conspicuous 
 feature on their gaily caparisoned steeds. Nothing is 
 more striking than the proud bearing and picturesque 
 appearance of these gallant cavaliers, with their burnous 
 thrown gracefully over the shoulder. At the review were 
 hundreds—officers and men—dashing about till the 
 ground almost shook under them. 
 
 Never had we seen such rapid evolutions, such 
 galloping ventre a terre. At one moment a squadron of 
 
MEDEAH TO COLEAH. 
 
 *35 
 
 full-blood sons of the desert were at our side, snortine 
 and pawing the green sod ; but see ! they are far away 
 over the great plain : the white burnous of the riders, 
 spread out with wind and speed, look like flying clouds, 
 and the little horses are but spots in the distance. It 
 was a novel and exciting scene. 
 
 We say that our longer-limbed racers run faster than 
 the Arab ; it may be so, but they do not seem to fly as 
 swiftly, and perhaps their legs do not move so fast, 
 although they may get over more ground in a given 
 number of seconds. 
 
 There was a Roman road from Medeah to Tipaza, 
 through which village—once a flourishing town—we 
 shall pass in going to Cherchell. Traces of the old 
 way have been discovered in making the new one, but 
 the line followed by the ancient and modern engineers 
 does not appear to be always the same. 
 
 As we intended to visit Cherchell and other places 
 on the coast, we retraced our steps as far as Blidah, 
 whence we took the diligence to Coleah. To be sure of 
 a seat in the coupe—from which the open country is seen 
 almost as well as in a private carriage—it is prudent to 
 telegraph beforehand. 
 
 Our route lay across the fertile plain of the Metidja, 
 and up the heights of the Sahel. Mile after mile of the 
 highroad runs between luxuriant hedgerows, of the 
 charming kind described in the chapter on the environs 
 of Algiers. 
 
 The Sahel—a pleasure-ground of nature—is a suc¬ 
 cession of vine-clad slopes, whose sunny sides are 
 covered with that beautiful and suggestive plant, 
 
 The French understand the culture of the vine 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 136 
 
 better, and attend to it more, than any other people. 
 Here, as in France, it is cut short, so as to concentrate 
 the flavour of the fruit into a limited number of grapes, the 
 stem not being allowed to grow high and straggling as in 
 Italy, where comparatively little care is taken of it; 
 this is the principal reason why wine is not so good there 
 as might be expected. 
 
 Algeria will no doubt be called to occupy an impor¬ 
 tant place amongst wine-producing countries. A great 
 part of the provinces of Algiers and Oran is highly 
 favourable to this branch of cultivation, as regards both 
 soil and climate; and it is this which has induced the 
 colonists to plant so many vineyards in these districts. 
 
 Everything seems to prognosticate that the Sahel— 
 which is an elongated table-land, extending from 
 Algiers to near Tipaza—and all that side of the littoral 
 will, at no distant period, be overgrown with vines, 
 which would yield an important article of exportation to 
 Europe. 
 
 Whilst we anticipate a brilliant future for the wines 
 of Algeria, it is not less certain that the French in the 
 colony prefer those of the mother country, so that 
 France still supplies a considerable quantity of all that 
 is drunk. As regards the superior qualities this pre¬ 
 dilection is intelligible enough ; but even the light table 
 wines in Algeria—like prophets—find no favour in their 
 own country. 
 
 Amongst the most enterprising and successful wine¬ 
 growers are the monks of La Trappe, that once austere 
 fraternity so well known for the almost fanatical severity 
 of the Order. They are now become more useful 
 members of society, being the means of distributing 
 
MEDEAH TO COLEAH. 
 
 1 37 
 
 comforts to others, which it is reasonable to presume 
 they do not altogether deny to themselves. These friars 
 have a vast establishment at Staoueli, where their ex¬ 
 tensive vineyards cover many acres of that famous 
 battle-field. 
 
 Speaking of the culture of the vine and the monks 
 of La Trappe has led us a little out of our way, for we 
 do not pass through Staoueli in going from Blidah to 
 Coleah, it being on the road from Algiers to the latter 
 town. 
 
 Having mentioned Staoueli, however, we may say a 
 few words about the memorable battle fought there, and 
 which—although the first general engagement—decided 
 the ultimate success of the invasion. 
 
 After the French landed at Sidi-Ferruch they were 
 constantly harassed by the Arabs, who lay hidden in 
 the underwood and wherever they could find shelter and 
 concealment.- 
 
 This kind of guerrilla warfare was only a prelude to 
 a more serious and combined attack. The Algerines, 
 having received considerable reinforcements, concentrated 
 their forces on the plain of Staoueli, and pressed their 
 commander-in-chief, Ibrahim-Agha y to lead them to 
 battle. 
 
 It was June 19, 1830, when 50,000 native troops 
 were set in motion. To these were opposed 35,000 
 French. The Arab sharpshooters marched first, next 
 followed two strong columns of infantry, one commanded 
 by Ibrahim and the other by the Bey of Constantine. 
 Each selected a French division for attack, and the 
 skirmishers were sent to reconnoitre the enemy’s posi¬ 
 tion. 
 
138 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS . 
 
 As the Arabs had on former occasions made short 
 work of the Spanish force under Charles V. and that 
 commanded by Count O’Reilly, they felt sure of giving 
 a good account of their new antagonists. 
 
 The Turks, under the Bey of Constantine, began the 
 battle, and rushed with such impetuous valour on the 
 first French division that they succeeded in penetrating 
 into the intrenchment, but, after this momentary success, 
 they were driven back at the point of the bayonet On 
 the right and in the centre the engagement was hot, 
 but of short duration. The French had reserved their 
 fire till the Arab army should be within gun-shot. 
 When it had approached near enough, it was received 
 by a fire of musketry which covered the ground with 
 dead and wounded. 
 
 Three times did the Algerian cavalry and infantry 
 rush furiously on the French lines, but were always 
 repulsed in disorder. As they were about to make 
 another effort, the French general assumed the offensive. 
 Two divisions advanced to the charge, whilst the brigades 
 formed a reserve before Sidi-Ferruch. 
 
 This combined attack decided the fortune of the day. 
 The flying Arabs, decimated by grape-shot, and falling 
 under the bayonet, abandoned their position and their 
 batteries, so that an hour afterwards the field of Staoueli 
 was occupied by the French. 
 
 It was what may be called a picturesque battle ; one 
 hundred camels, four hundred standing tents, many, 
 pieces of artillery, and some well-provisioned magazines 
 fell into the hands of the conquerors. 
 
 This brilliant engagement between African and 
 European troops was a scene such as the florid and life- 
 
 t 
 
MEDEAH TO COLEAH. 
 
 139 
 
 giving pencil of Horace Vernet loved to portray ; many 
 pictures of the kind lie has left to his country, and they 
 are now to be seen on the historical walls of Versailles. 
 
 From Coleah— called by the Arabs the ‘ Holy City 
 —the view over the plain of the Metidja, looking towards 
 the Gorges de la Chiffa and the lower Atlas, is very 
 striking. The town itself, partly Arab and partly Euro¬ 
 pean, does not offer many objects of interest, except two 
 mosques and a Moorish fountain, all in the best style of 
 these light and elegant structures. 
 
 The marabout of Sidi Embarek, near the larger of 
 the mosques, was one of the only buildings which 
 remained intact after the terrible earthquake of 1825 
 had laid Coleah in ruins. Mustapha Pacha erected the 
 present edifice, to commemorate the event of the sacred 
 
 temple having been' spared the fate of the rest of the 
 city. 
 
 The gicat attraction of Coleah is the Jardin des 
 
 Zouaves, a name given in honour of the soldiers who 
 made it. 
 
 French gardens are often stiff and formal, and a 
 small portion of that at Coleah is laid out in this style ; 
 but it seems to have been done only for the purpose of 
 contrasting bad taste with good, for in the greater part 
 Natuie has been taken as a model. The inequalities of 
 the ground, and a river running below some bold rocks 
 forming a miniature ravine, have been turned to good 
 •account. The tall and shady trees which stand on 
 and about these locks are frequented by a multitude of 
 singing birds, whose songs—the sweet voice of the night¬ 
 ingale in particular—make this garden truly delightful. 
 The Jardin des Zouaves at Coleah is perhaps the most 
 
140 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 picturesque in Algeria, and, after that of the capital, it is 
 one of the most beautiful and extensive. 
 
 In this way do the French soldiers pass their leisure 
 hours and exert their ingenuity wherever they pitch 
 their tents. Such occupations are rational and praise¬ 
 worthy in a profession in which so much time is usually 
 lost in idleness, or in worse than doing nothing. 
 
 All over the colony we see small parcels of waste 
 land turned into oases, which contribute both to the 
 comfoit and pleasure of the troops, who have converted 
 unprofitable ground into pleasant spots. It is the same 
 with other pursuits, for each man in the army avails him¬ 
 self of the tiade he learnt before he enlisted, or was en¬ 
 rolled by conscription. 
 
 At Coleah a carriage can be engaged to the Tombeau 
 de la Chretienne, and to the site where Tipaza once 
 stood. After seeing these interesting ruins, the tourist 
 will proceed to Marengo, where the road joins that 
 leading to Cherchell (Julia Csesarea). 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 COLE AH TO CHERCHELL. 
 
 What was this tower of strength ? Within its cave 
 What treasure lay so lock’d, so hid ? A woman’s grave. 
 But who was she, the lady of the dead ? 
 
 Childe Harold , Canto III. 
 
 Stop ! for thy tread is on an Empire’s dust! 
 
 An earthquake’s spoil is sepulchred below. —Byron. 
 
 At a distance of eighteen miles from Coleah we 
 come to the mysterious mausoleum of which we have 
 spoken.. It is called by the Arabs Koubar-Roumia. 
 Accoiding to some authorities it served for the burial- 
 place of the kings of Mauritania, others say that it was 
 erected in memory of a Vandal princess who had been 
 converted to Christianity. This remarkable buildino- 
 which is seen from a distance of 60 miles, is 150 feet 
 high, its base—of a polygonal form—is 200 feet in 
 diameter ; Ionic columns are placed at the sides of a 
 monolith forming a kind of built-up door, 12 feet in 
 height and 6 wide. Above this is a flight of steps, each 
 of them nearly 2 feet high. As the circumference of the 
 edifice diminishes gradually till near the top, it has the 
 appearance of a truncated cone. 
 
142 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 Legend of the Tombeau. 
 
 A long time ago there lived in the land of the 
 Hadjoutes a man called Jussuf-ben-Cassem. He was 
 married and had a very happy home; his wife was 
 handsome, amiable, and gentle, his children were 
 healthy and obedient, but Jussuf-ben-Cassem was brave, 
 and he wished to go to the wars. Now, brave as he 
 was, his courage did not prevent him from falling into 
 the hands of the Christians, who carried him to their 
 country and sold him as a slave. Although his master 
 tieated him well, Jussuf was sick at heart, and many 
 were the bitter tears he shed when he thought of all he 
 had lost. 
 
 One day when he was working in the fields, he felt 
 more dejected than usual; so after he had finished his 
 labour, he sat down beneath a tree, and gave himself 
 up to sad reflections. * 
 
 ‘Alas/ said he, 'whilst I am cultivating fields for 
 another who is attending to mine ? What is the fate of 
 my wife and my children ? Am I then condemned 
 never to see them again, and to die in the land of the 
 unbelievers ? ’ As he gave vent to this sorrowful lament 
 he saw a man of grave aspect, habited in the dress of a 
 sage, approach the spot where he was sitting. 
 
 ‘Arab,’ said the stranger, ‘to what tribe dost thou 
 belong ? ’ 
 
 ‘ I am of the tribe of the Hadjoutes,’ answered Ben- 
 Cassem. 
 
 ‘ Then thou must know Koubar-Roumia ? ’ 
 
 Koubai-Roumia ! Alas ! my farm, my home, where 
 
COLE AH TO CHERCHELL. 
 
 143 
 
 I left all that I love, is not an hour’s walk from this 
 mausoleum.’ 
 
 Would st thou like to see thy home again, and to 
 1 eturn to the bosom of thy family ? ’ 
 
 Canst thou doubt it?’ said the captive. ‘But 
 what avails it to pray for that which cannot be granted, 
 to desire what we cannot obtain ? ’ 
 
 I can obtain it,’ replied the Christian ; ‘ I can unbar 
 
 the doors which keep thee from thy country, and send 
 
 thee to enjoy the caresses of thy loved ones; but for 
 
 this I require a service from thee. Art thou willing to 
 perform it ? ’ 
 
 ‘Speak,’ said Ben-Cassem; ‘there is nothing I would 
 
 not undertake to regain my liberty, provided thou do’st 
 
 not demand what would endanger the salvation of my 
 soul.’ y 
 
 ‘Be not uneasy on this account,’ replied the Christian 
 
 ! Hear , What 1 have to sa y- I. shall pay thy ransom 
 immediately, and furnish thee with means to return to 
 Algiers. When thou art arrived in thy own country, 
 thou shalt devote three days to thy family and friends 
 rejoicing with them on thy return. The fourth day thou’ 
 must betake thyself to Koubar-Roumia. Having kindled 
 a fire near the monument, thou shalt burn in it the 
 paper which I am going to give thee. Thou seest that 
 nothing is easier than to do this. Swear to observe what 
 I have just told thee, and I shall set thee free.’ 
 
 Ben-Cassem did all that was required of him by the 
 Christian, who now put into his hand a paper written 
 over in magic characters, the signification of which 
 Jussuf could not divine. He obtained his liberty the 
 
144 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. r 
 
 same day; and his mysterious benefactor accompanied 
 him to a seaport, where he embarked for Algiers. 
 
 He remained only a short time in this city, so great 
 was his desire to see his wife and children. Continuing 
 his journey he travelled as quickly as possible, tik he 
 came to his own tribe. 
 
 It would be impossible to describe the joy of his 
 family, and his own, at this happy meeting. His friends 
 also came to rejoice with them at this unexpected good 
 fortune, so that during three days his dwelling was filled 
 with visitors. 
 
 On the fourth day he did not forget the promise he 
 had made to his liberator, and at daybreak he set out 
 for Koubar-Roumia. Here he lighted a fire, and burnt 
 the mysterious paper, as he had been ordered to do. 
 The flames had scarcely consumed the last fragment 
 when, to his great astonishment, he saw pieces of gold 
 and silver come out of the mausoleum from between the 
 stones. It was like a swarm of bees, frightened by some 
 unusual noise, rushing out of their hive. These coins, 
 after turning about the monument for a moment, flew 
 away towards the land of the Christians with wonderful 
 rapidity, in a long line, the end of which was lost in the 
 distance. It seemed as if several flights of birds were 
 following each other. 
 
 Ben-Cassem, who saw all this treasure passing over 
 his head, jumped as high as he could, and tried to catch 
 in his hands some little of the wealth that was escaping 
 from him. After he had exhausted much of his strength 
 in these vain attempts he remembered his burnous, 
 which he threw up as high as possible. By this expe¬ 
 dient he succeeded in bringing down some twenty pieces 
 
CO LEAH TO CHER CHELL. 
 
 145 
 
 of gold, and a few more silver ones. But no sooner had 
 
 the precious metal touched the ground than the flow of 
 
 money from the walls ceased, and all returned to its 
 usual state. 
 
 Ben-Cassem spoke of what had happened only to a 
 few friends. This extraordinary adventure came how¬ 
 ever to the ears of the Pacha, who sent workmen to pull 
 down Koubar-Roumia, hoping to possess himself of the 
 treasure which it still contained. These men fell to 
 work with great spirit, but on the first blow of the 
 hammer a phantom in the form of a woman appeared 
 on the top of the tomb, calling out ‘ Aloula ! Aloula! 
 
 come to help me ; they are going to take away thy 
 treasures.’ J 
 
 Instantly there emerged from the lake enormous 
 mosquitoes, as large as birds, which put the workmen to 
 flight by their venomous stings. 
 
 Since that time every attempt to get into Koubar- 
 Roumia has been made in vain; and wise men, learned 
 in such mysteries, have declared that a Christian only 
 can possess himself of the riches it contains. 
 
 Nothing less picturesque can be imagined than the 
 modern villages—French or Spanish—we pass through 
 on almost every highroad ; they usually consist of a row 
 °f straggling small houses which are seldom more than, 
 one story high, built on the wayside ; many are mere 
 sheds, and all bear the stamp of inferiority to those we 
 meet with in little places in the mother country. This 
 inferiority may be remarked in the recently acquired 
 colonies of other nations. 
 
 The emigrant appears, builds, and his dwelling re¬ 
 presents the smallness of his purse and the extent of his 
 
 L 
 
146 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 bad taste. The shops cannot at first be classified after 
 the names of trades, for each sells a little of everything, 
 that the most pressing necessities may be supplied. New 
 people arrive ; but the original stamp of ugliness remains 
 long after the village has become large and prosperous. 
 
 But we are arrived at Tipaza, near the sea. The 
 site where the old Roman town once flourished is sur¬ 
 rounded by venerable olive-trees, almost as old as the 
 ruins they enclose. Scattered about are many interesting 
 vestiges of other days. Amongst the relics of antiquity 
 are the remains of an aqueduct, which doubtless formed 
 part of the vast structure of Oued Nador, which we shall 
 pass after leaving Marengo on our way to Cherchell: 
 a part of the ivy-grown walls of a basilica are also 
 standing. The Arabs call this desolate spot Tfessadt, or 
 the ruins, and the solitude which surrounds them cer¬ 
 tainly bears out the sad appellation. 
 
 The sea rolls its restless waves on the shore, ad¬ 
 vancing and retiring, yet ever fresh and sparkling in the 
 sun, which has risen and set two thousand years over the 
 city and its wreck. Nature remains unchanged whilst 
 the works of man rise and fall ; no planetary revolution, 
 no tide in the sea of Time brings them back when they 
 sink into decay. Such is the ‘ now ’ and ‘ then ’ of 
 Tipaza ; but we are approaching ground of greater fame, 
 a mightier ruin—Julia Caesarea—the once splendid 
 capital of Roman Africa. 
 
 On our way between Tipaza and Marengo some 
 Arabs, who were breaking stones on the road, told us 
 that they had just seen a lion cross it, not far from 
 where they were at work. 
 
CO LEAH TO CHERCHELL. 
 
 147 
 
 It sometimes happens, but not often in the present 
 day, that the king of the Atlas travels to the littoral. 
 
 About Mount Chenoua, at the Western and wilder 
 end of the range of hills which rise between the plain of 
 the Metidja and the sea, some panthers have their 
 haunts, but a lion is a rare apparition. To anticipate, 
 we afterwards heard that the one which had crossed our 
 path had killed eight oxen in ten days. 
 
 The coachman told us that, on one occasion, coming 
 suddenly round a bush, he found himself face to face with 
 a large black lion, that he—the coachman, not the lion— 
 paralysed with terror, could not move one step; the 
 animal, which appears not to have been hungry, after 
 looking at him quietly, walked slowly away. 
 
 It is well known that the lion is dangerous only 
 when he is in search of food ; but the European has 
 another chance of safety when he meets the sultan of 
 the desert, provided the tourist is in a carriage driven 
 by an Arab ; the lion always eats the Arab first! his 
 bare legs and gay attire being more familiar and attrac¬ 
 tive to the noble beast than is our sombre, ugly dress, 
 which seems to be both strange and repulsive to his 
 good taste. 
 
 As we approached Marengo our driver, pointing with 
 his whip to a trim farm near the road, said, ‘ That is my 
 property; ’ and a very pretty property it was, with its 
 garden, fields, and vineyard, for our coachman to 
 possess. 
 
 It is not unusual for people of this class, after 
 passing ten or twelve years in the colony, to purchase 
 small estates, which they would never have been able to 
 
148 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 do if they had not come to Algeria, where the y are now 
 landed proprietors in a small way. 
 
 Marengo is a large modern village, almost a town, 
 quite French in appearance. 
 
 In the distance, facing the avenue of trees by which 
 we leave it, we see before us a lofty and singularly 
 formed mountain, called la Dent du Lion , a name given 
 it by the Arabs ; it is a striking object, never lost to 
 view in this open country. 
 
 About half way between Marengo and the once 
 famous capital of the Roman settlement in Northern 
 Africa, we come in sight of the magnificent aqueduct, 
 which brought the water of the river El Hachen to 
 Julia Caesarea. Now it is seen following lofty ridges, 
 now it is carried over valleys from hill to hill, spanning 
 great heights and space till it becomes lost to sight 
 when its course has been cut through a mountain. At 
 Beni-Habiba, where it is a second time visible, it is 
 almost intact, its seventeen arches—in three tiers one 
 over the other, standing in solitary grandeur amid the 
 stillness of nature—being conspicuous from the high¬ 
 road. After this the aqueduct, following the sinuosities 
 of its way, is again hidden by the inequality of the 
 ground, till near Cherchell, when the traveller once more 
 sees the remains of the vast structure in a less perfect, 
 but more picturesque state ; the lower part of its gigantic 
 supports are here so worn away by time that it seems 
 miraculous how they can sustain the mass of solid 
 Roman masonry, and preserve their own equilibrium. 
 Looking up at the arches above, they seem to be sus¬ 
 pended so high in the air that we fear to hazard a guess 
 at their elevation. An Arab standing below reached 
 
COLEAH TO CHERCHELL. 
 
 149 
 
 only to the two lower stones, giving us an idea of the 
 proportion man sometimes bears to objects of his own 
 creation. We saw nothing in Rome more striking than 
 these magnificent remains of former greatness in one of 
 its provinces. 
 
 Drawing nearer to Cherchell, evidences that a great 
 city once stood on the site where this little town is built 
 develope themselves at every step. Enough remains of 
 the old walls to show that*the length of the ancient 
 capital was six miles, parallel with the sea. Extending 
 inland across the plain, it rose amphitheatrically up the 
 heights beyond. Here are now strewed vestiges of the 
 once splendid capital of Mauritania. Amongst the ruins 
 may be seen what is left of a fine arena, elliptic in form, 
 and nearly as large as the Coliseum in Rome. The oval 
 is unbroken, many of the steps are still there, and a few 
 of them are perfect up several gradations. In this circus 
 men were torn in pieces by wild beasts, Christians were 
 burnt alive, and it was the scene of other cruelties which 
 disgraced a great but, in some respects, a semi-barbar¬ 
 ous" age. We see the wreck of an open-air theatre, and 
 extensive baths. A temple dedicated to Neptune stands 
 near the sea, and not far from it are the bioken fiag- 
 ments of another, besides several monuments now fallen 
 
 into decay. 
 
 The site on which the ancient city stood is now 
 either waste or cultivated land ; here and there is a 
 peasant’s house built with the stones and pillars of 
 temples, which have been used to construct farmhouses 
 and Arab huts. ‘To what vile uses’ have they come ! 
 Mutilated monuments, bearing half-effaced inscriptions, 
 fluted columns of beautiful marble, are scattered about 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 150 
 
 in every direction ; whilst on digging almost anywhere, 
 mosaics, statues, and coins are found at the depth of a 
 few feet, for the classic ground has been only partially 
 explored; enough has however been found to form a 
 collection of works of art in Cherchell, and a more valu¬ 
 able one in the museum at Algiers, besides which many 
 fine specimens have been sent to the Louvre at Paris. 
 Some columns are so large that it was not possible to 
 remove them to a distance, and they now lie in the 
 public walks, serving for seats. Like all such relics, 
 they are looked at by the people of Cherchell with the 
 indifference of habit and ignorance. 
 
 The port of Julia Caesarea, which was of considerable 
 size, has been destroyed by an earthquake. Buildings, 
 overturned and thrown into the sea may, in calm 
 weather, still be distinguished in the water. 
 
 Nothing tells the mutability of time so forcibly as 
 the ruins of a great city which flourished in a former 
 age. A modern cemetery is the burialplace of yester¬ 
 day. The ruins of Caesarea are monuments to the far 
 Past; its broken walls are tombstones to the memory of 
 a remote generation. On a spot so suggestive of van¬ 
 ished greatness, the least impressionable mind must try 
 to picture to itself how the new capital looked when its 
 peopled streets and beautiful edifices covered the plain, 
 and rose proudly up the hills in the background, over¬ 
 looking the sea, on which floated Roman galleys and a 
 powerful navy. 
 
 The following historical notice may be acceptable to 
 some readers. 
 
 Jol, which stood on the site where the modern town 
 of Cherchell is now built, was a Carthaginian city, which 
 
CO LEAH TO CHERCHELL . 
 
 I 5 I 
 
 Juba, second king of this name, enlarged and adorned 
 and, under the name of Julia Caesarea, made the capital 
 of Caesarian Mauritania. 
 
 After a prosperous reign of forty-five yeais, during 
 which he promoted science and art, Juba left the throne 
 to his son Ptolemy, who was assassinated by order of 
 Caligula, whom he had eclipsed in splendour. After 
 this Mauritania, united to the Roman empire, became 
 the theatre of intestine wars excited by hostile religious 
 sects. Firmus, a Moorish chief, profiting by the dog¬ 
 matic disputes between Catholics and Donatists, de- 
 scended from the mountains and seized upon the city, 
 which he destroyed. Theodore, after vanquishing this 
 barbarian, rebuilt the town, which was again reduced to 
 ashes by the Vandals. 
 
 Caesarea appears to have regained some of its former 
 magnificence under the Byzantine Gieeks. 
 
 Marmol relates that the Caliph Kaim, who reigned 
 at Kairouan, overthrew it from top to bottom. Leon 
 the African says, that his countrymen after their expul¬ 
 sion from Granada took refuge here, and occupied them¬ 
 selves with the care of silk-worms. In 1531, Andrea 
 Doria burnt the fleet which Barbarossa had assembled in 
 the port, but could not keep what he had taken by a 
 coup de main. From this period nothing of historical 
 interest took place till 1830. The rest is too well known 
 to require recapitulating. 
 
 The little town of Cherchell, which has grown like 
 an incrustation on the remains of the old city, is a mix¬ 
 ture of French and Moorish buildings, the latter predo¬ 
 minating, as they do in most of the mediaeval towns of 
 Algeria ; it was originally built by the Moors shortly 
 
!52 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 after this period, for they established themselves here 
 when they were driven out of Spain, about the close of 
 the fifteenth century. The houses are only one story 
 high, either owing to the danger of earthquakes, or 
 because the inhabitants were too poor to construct 
 larger ones. 
 
 Cherchell is delightfully situated, and is a pleasant 
 little place, for those who do not expect more than it 
 has to offer. Almost all the natives speak French, 
 which is not the case in Algiers. Here, the Kuropean 
 and indigenous population being thrown more together, 
 the children play with each other, and thus learn French 
 in the best and most natural way. 
 
 We were at first surprised when we spoke to a little 
 tatooed girl—with Moorish bracelets on her arms, and 
 rings round the small part of the leg, khalkhals or 
 anklets—to find her answer like a Parisian. 
 
 If nations, who have possessions obtained by con¬ 
 quest particularly when the conquered people are an 
 uncivilised race—appreciated the advantage of language 
 as a means of instructing their new subjects and making 
 them comprehend the benefits of civilisation, they would 
 not neglect so important a medium. In Cherchell, 
 where the natives assimilate with Europeans, they ac¬ 
 quire the habits of industry and trading tendencies of 
 the latter, whilst they become friendly and well-disposed 
 towards them ; as was shown during the revolt in 1871, 
 when the town Arabs took part with the French against 
 a tiibe of Kabyles who inhabit the neighbouring 
 mountain district. These people, excited by their Mara¬ 
 bouts, devastated the country around, burning woods, 
 attacking farms, and murdering all who had not taken 
 
CO-LEAH TO CHERCHELL. 
 
 •53 
 
 refuge in Cherchell. Here the French and Spaniaids, 
 supported by the Moors, were safe during the month the 
 
 gates were closed against the insurgents. 
 
 In Algiers the Kabyles are morally an isolated 
 people. Being entirely ignorant of French, no inter¬ 
 course is possible ; thus they remain apart, cherishing in 
 their hearts the same sentiments towards their con¬ 
 querors as they did in the days of the Emir, who is still 
 the high priest venerated and exalted in their mono¬ 
 tonous" chants and wretched music. Those who doubt 
 this will be better able to decide when they have read 
 our narrative of the massacres at Palestro, about which 
 we shall speak when we come to that unfortunate 
 
 village. 
 
 The French possess in a high degree the power of 
 assimilation, a recent proof of which has been given in 
 the patriotic stampede from Alsace and Lorraine, where 
 the Prussians were not able to recruit half a dozen 
 young men in two provinces which once formed part of 
 
 Germany. 
 
 But even this quality of attraction, so justly attri¬ 
 buted to the humanity and amiability of the French cha¬ 
 racter, has not been able to conciliate those on whom it 
 could have little effect, owing to their ignorance of the 
 language. 
 
 Christians who were taken prisoners by the Algerines 
 before the conquest had the choice of Islamism 01 
 death ; a more expeditious way of making converts 
 than the persuasions of the Bible Society. When the 
 French, not following the example of the Mahometans, 
 allowed them to keep their religion, it would have been 
 at least sound policy in establishing schools to have pro- 
 
I 54 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 moted education wherever it was possible to introduce it. 
 If this had been done, the Arabs in this second genera¬ 
 tion might have spoken French like natives of France 
 and, with the language, would have acquired new ideas, 
 have become civilised, and instead of being hostile in 
 feeling, they might now be as much French, on many 
 essential points, as the French themselves; but this is a 
 digression. 
 
 For those who have no resources in themselves 
 Cherchell must be a dull sojourn. What has a man to 
 do here who does not know its history, and cares not a 
 Barbary fig about it ? Who has no taste for nature, and 
 is ignorant of art, who can neither draw nor paint, is not 
 a sportsman, and does not like fishing? For whom 
 there is no society, where English is not spoken ? Where 
 there is no club, no ‘ Times/ nothing, in short, that he is 
 used to, and which is necessary to his existence ? Such 
 persons, after a superficial view of the remains, vote the 
 ancient city a bore, and wonder what people discover 
 interesting, where there is nothing to see ; as if they 
 expected to find Julia Caesarea still standing in all its 
 glory ! 
 
 Two classes of English, in particular, visit Cherchell— 
 those who find nothing, and those who find too much. 
 We have spoken of the first; the other travellers are 
 dilettanti archeologists, who copy every scrap of inscrip¬ 
 tion into their note books, fill their trunks with stones, 
 which they treasure up for mosaics, and buy coins on 
 which, after a good deal of rubbing, they sometimes bring 
 out an excellent likeness of Napoleon III. 
 
 Of course real archeologists also come to Cherchell; 
 
COLEAff TO CHERCHELL. 
 
 I5S 
 
 for them the site of Julia Csesarea must indeed be a 
 fruitful field for labour. Besides these, there are no 
 doubt some stray tourists, men of taste and intelligence, 
 who do not regret having passed a few days on a spot, 
 charming at present, and more than interesting fiom its 
 association with the past. As to ourselves, we lemained 
 a fortnight at the excellent hotel, one of the best in the 
 three provinces, at once geitiiithlich to use an untrans¬ 
 latable German word, which expresses even more than 
 our cherished word comfortable—and supeiior. Oui 
 time was spent most agreeably ; we had plenty to sketch 
 and paint, and, as to society, all the officers in Cherchell 
 breakfasted and dined at the inn. In the room. where 
 we were, the general from Milianah—on a tour of inspec¬ 
 tion—and the commandant of the town occupied the 
 next tables to us ; a young captain of zouaves was seated 
 at another. They had all knocked about the woild, and 
 in their intercourse with different people of vaiious. 
 nations had brushed oft the dust of prejudice, men whose 
 conversation was both entertaining and instructive. In 
 speaking of Algeria all were equally enthusiastic , and 
 we obtained much valuable information on subjects 
 talked over, as we discussed dinners which would have 
 done honour to the best hotels in Europe. 
 
 The commandant was the personification of a fine 
 military character, a perfect gentleman, always in good 
 humour, and full of anecdote, one whose good qualities 
 were inscribed on his frank and intelligent face. He 
 was married to an English lady, and we never saw 
 a man prouder of his wife, or who was more affec¬ 
 tionately attached to his children—two pretty little 
 
156 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 girls who were soon to arrive from France with their 
 mother—but sooner still a shocking fate was to befall the 
 noble fellow himself. 
 
 The young officer was a striking contrast to the jolly 
 commandant: if the latter saw life like a landscape 
 lighted by the sun of Africa, the handsome face of the 
 captain was always under a cloud ; ‘ triste, tres triste,’ 
 was the comment he made on almost everything. This 
 was sometimes very amusing, for, in his gloomy absence 
 of mind, when a funny story had made us all laugh, he 
 occasionally shook his head with a croaking remark. 
 The general asked him if it were true that he was soon 
 to be married. ‘ Oui, mon general, very soon,’ he replied 
 with a sigh. ‘ I must go to Algiers to see my fiancee ; le 
 mariage est pourtant une chose triste, tres triste.’ 
 
 One of the last things the commandant told us be¬ 
 fore we left Cherchell seemed to presage some calamity. 
 He was passionately fond of hunting, and related a 
 strange dream about it. He had dreamt that he was 
 chasing wild boars—sometimes more dangerous than 
 the lion himself—that one of these savage animals rushed 
 at him as he was taking a steady aim—his gun missed 
 fire—and he awoke just as the fierce brute was about to 
 tear him in pieces with his tusks. 
 
 A few days after we returned to Algiers the French 
 journals contained an account of a tragical event, under 
 the title of ‘ Le drame de CherchelL A gendarme called 
 Noel, who had been degraded for some breach of disci¬ 
 pline, furious through drink and excitement, set fire to the 
 barracks and, bayonet in hand, resisted those who came 
 to arrest him. After wounding several soldiers, Com- 
 
COLE AH TO CHERCHELL. 
 
 157 
 
 mandant Conti attempted to disarm the madman, who 
 sprang upon him passing the bayonet through his body. 
 Our unfortunate friend died soon after from the dieadful 
 wound. 
 
 The gendarme killed himself in prison at Blidah. 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS . 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 CHERCHELL TO MASCARA. 
 
 Numidia’s landscape has its spots 
 Of pastoral pleasantness. 
 
 Here nature’s hues all harmonise—fields white 
 With alasum, or blue with bugloss—banks 
 Of glossy fennel, blent with tulips wild, 
 
 And sunflowers, like a garment prankt with gold ; 
 
 Acres and miles of opal asphodel, 
 
 Where sports and couches the black-eyed gazelle.— Campbell. 
 
 Nature smiled, and o’er the landscape threw 
 Her richest fragrance and her brightest hue. 
 
 •—These scenes Salvator’s soul adored; 
 
 The rocky pass half-hung with shaggy wood, 
 
 And the cleft oak flung boldly o’er the flood. —Rogers. 
 
 There is a cross-country road from Cherchell to Mili- 
 anah, but no public conveyance, and it is too bad 
 for a private one ; we therefore retrograde to El-Affroun, 
 on the railway line to Oran. 
 
 Leaving the train at the second station, Bou r Medfa, 
 we took a carriage to Hamman-Rira, a drive of about 
 six miles, as we wished to see the once famous Roman 
 Spa. The road is one of the most charming that can be 
 imagined. 
 
 We have expended so much eulogy in our descriptions 
 
CHERCHELL TO MASCARA. 
 
 159 
 
 of these roads that we may appear too enthusiastic in the 
 expression of our admiration ; we can however assure the 
 reader that the reality far exceeds anything we can say 
 of a country, where bold and romantic scenery, a luxu¬ 
 riant and gigantic vegetation, are varied by the soft and 
 quiet charms of an English landscape changing again to 
 the grand characteristics of Alpine regions. 
 
 The hot springs of the Hamman-Rira gush out of 
 the S.E. side of a hill, which is separated by a ravine 
 from those near it. 
 
 Higher up, at an elevation of 5,000 feet, the peak of 
 the Zakkar darts its sharp point into the sky, towering 
 above all the other peaks of this vast accumulation of 
 rock. 
 
 Dr. Lelorrain, a distinguished physician and geo¬ 
 logist, is of opinion that this mountain, like all those of 
 the lower Atlas range, has been of slow formation. 
 Mineral waters are generally found in places where there 
 is volcanic matter, and the many earthquakes which 
 shake this mass every year seem to indicate the existence 
 of some such subterranean agency. 
 
 The higher part of the hill forms an inclined plateau, 
 where a Roman town once stood which, taking its name 
 from the hot springs, was called Aqua Calidse. The 
 remains of walls, enormous blocks of hewn stone, broken 
 columns, capitals, porticoes, the ruins of a temple and 
 baths, together with many tombstones that have pre¬ 
 served their inscriptions, all bear witness to the prosperity 
 and opulence of the city, which seems to have been 
 built during the reign of Tiberius, about thirty-two years 
 after the Christian era. 
 
 It is probable that the mineral springs which burst 
 
i6o 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 from the side of the hill caused the spot to be converted 
 into a fashionable watering place, such as are met with in 
 the present day at Bath in England, in the South of 
 France, ancf in Germany. 
 
 It is well known what splendid edifices the Romans 
 erected wherever they found mineral waters. How 
 strong was their passion for baths we may form some 
 idea from the description Vitruvius has left us ; whilst, 
 what we see of these ruined buildings and the shapeless 
 remains scattered about attests the importance and 
 magnificence of Aqua Calidse, which was the favourite 
 place of resort for invalids and all who delighted in the 
 pleasures of the bath, at the time Csesarea, Tipaza, and 
 Icosium (Algiers) were flourishing cities. 
 
 Returning to Bou-Medfa, we proceeded to the third 
 station, Affreville, at which we engaged a carriage for 
 Milianah, where an up-hill zig-zag ride of about an hour 
 brought us to a height of some 2,300 feet. 
 
 Milianah, like Medeah, placed among the mountains 
 of the lower Atlas, is built on a plateau of the Zakkar, 
 whose dark sombre form, standing behind the town, has a 
 grand and impressive effect. But the most admired view 
 from Milianah is the prospect over the vast plain of the 
 Chelifif, beyond which rises the bold range of the Atlas. 
 
 French writers call this the finest sight in the world, 
 and we heard so much of it from people who had been 
 to Milianah that we must confess to the disappointment 
 which frequently results from too much praise ; to us 
 the mountains in the distance appeared deficient in 
 variety and in beauty of form. Certainly they are, in 
 this respect, not to be compared with the loftier and 
 more picturesque chain of the Noric Alps, which stand 
 
CHERCHELL TO MASCARA. 161 
 
 in all the sublimity of nature before the author’s villa in 
 Salzburg. 15 
 
 In Milianah itself little is to be seen—only a few 
 straight streets, and one or two squares, bordered with 
 trees in the French style. Except the remains of an 
 old minaret, there is no appearance of Arab buildings. 
 
 When we were last here it was winter ; in these 
 elevated, although Southern regions, the temperature is 
 very different at that season from the eternal spring 
 which gladdens the face of nature on the littoral. At 
 Milianah, after the end of November, a little snow falls 
 on the mountains, but it soon melts. 
 
 On our former visit we sat down to table in a curtain- 
 drawn saloon, lighted by candles, a crackling wood-fire 
 blazing on the hearth. This called to mind the Northern 
 comforts of a winter dinner, and it must be owned that 
 the convivial meal taken under artificial light has its 
 charms and attractions. Now it is spring—the scene is 
 changed—open windows, flowers, and daylight are the 
 accompaniments of the repast, which fortunately is 
 equally good in both cases. 
 
 Everybody knows how much effect the moral has on 
 the physical, or in simpler language, how much a good 
 dinner influences our feelings ; we take another view of 
 things, and when we again looked at the celebrated 
 prospect from the bastion we liked it better, and thought 
 that our morning impression had scarcely done it justice. 
 
 Whilst we were admiring nature we fell in with an 
 Englishman, who complained that he and his family had 
 been obliged to sleep in their own carriage, all the hotels 
 being full. It happened that there was an exchange of 
 military between Milianah and some other place, and 
 
 M 
 
162 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 that many officers had arrived before the others had 
 left. 
 
 Our countryman told us that he had passed the night 
 in reflecting how he could avoid such an inconvenience 
 on other occasions, that a brilliant idea had occurred to 
 him, which was to travel in future with a tent or tents, in 
 which he and his household could encamp Arab or gipsy 
 fashion, and thus be ‘ independent of all confounded 
 hotels.’ We applauded the originality of the conception, 
 adding that, as an Englishman he would surprise nobody. 
 
 From Milianah we went to see the magnificent forest 
 of cedars near Teniet-el-Had. This village, which is 
 still higher than the town we had left, is not remarkable 
 in itself; but the road to it, which crosses fertile valleys 
 and passes through woods of Aleppian pines, thuias, 
 ever-green oaks, and other beautiful trees, is delightful. 
 
 Few objects in nature are more striking than a great 
 forest ; a forest of cedars in particular is solemn and 
 imposing. The traveller on entering that of which we 
 are speaking, will observe with astonishment a tree 
 which has raised an enormous stone entwined in its 
 branches, and carried it up in its growth ; thus it is held 
 suspended two yards above the ground. 
 
 Besides Algeria, there are in the world only two 
 countries in which this majestic tree is found. It grows 
 in the solitudes of the Himalaya and on Mount Febanon. 
 Those at Teniet-el-Had are of prodigious size ; and one, 
 the monarch of the wood, measures more than six feet 
 in diameter. 
 
 Regaining the railway line we took the train to 
 Relizane, after which we continued our journey by the 
 diligence. The country through which we passed was 
 not very interesting till we came in sight of the sea. 
 
CHERCHELL TO MASCARA. 
 
 163 
 
 Mostaganem—the next place we visited—is built on 
 an eminence where the Murustaga of the Romans once 
 stood ; from a distance it is striking and peculiar. 
 
 If the reader can figure to himself a city cut out of 
 chalk—or of a material less crude and cold in colour— 
 with terraced roofs giving it a flat look, broken by 
 domes, minarets and other superstructures rising from 
 the blended mass of white houses, like towers and spires 
 emerge from the low mist on an autumnal morning, he 
 may form a tolerably correct idea of the Arab portion of 
 Mostaganem ; a quarter which, if less comfortable and 
 convenient, is the most interesting to the wanderer in 
 search of new impressions. 
 
 The relative position of the indigenous and Euro¬ 
 pean populations, as they reside in Algiers and at Mos¬ 
 taganem are inverted; the lower part being here in¬ 
 habited by the former, and that above by the latter. 
 
 From the sea Mostaganem, with its streets, squares, 
 and houses built on arcades, makes an agreeable im¬ 
 pression, to which the embattled walls round the town 
 greatly contribute. 
 
 The environs are well cultivated, and possess all the 
 pleasant natural attractions which usually surround Al¬ 
 gerian towns. 
 
 From Mostaganem we took the coach to Oran ; the 
 road, which follows the sea-coast, and passes from time 
 to time through small woods of thuia (lignum vita ), 
 lemon groves, green oaks, and olive trees, is enchanting. 
 
 At a little less than half way to Oran we came to 
 Arzew, the Arsenaria of the ancients. It has an excel¬ 
 lent port, which is wanting at Mostaganem. 
 
 The Romans, fully appreciating the advantageous 
 
 M 2 
 
164 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 situation of Arsenaria, gave its fine harbour the name of 
 Portus Magnus. The position of Arzewis indeed highly 
 favourable for communication with the interior, the rich 
 valleys of the Sig, Habra, Mina, the fertile and exten¬ 
 sive plain of the ChelifF, offering facilities for traffic and 
 travelling to the Western Sahara. As will be seen in 
 another chapter, a railway from this point in the above 
 direction is projected, and will soon be in course of con¬ 
 struction. 
 
 Our road, which sometimes lay more inland, passed 
 through a highly cultivated country till we arrived at 
 Oran. 
 
 Oran, which is a place of great antiquity, became 
 long after its foundation a Roman colony, and was 
 called the Unica Colonia. It was afterwards possessed 
 successively by the Vandals, Berbers, Arabs, and Turks. 
 
 In 1509 it was taken by the Spaniards, under the 
 command of the celebrated Cardinal Ximenes. 
 
 I11 1708 Oran again fell into the hands of the Turks, 
 but in 1732 it was once more occupied by the Spaniards. 
 During the reign of Philip V. they however evacuated 
 the town, and gave it up in 1790 to its last masters, in 
 consequence of a dreadful earthquake which laid almost 
 the entire city in ruins. 
 
 Oran is now regarded as one of the most flourishing- 
 
 o 
 
 towns of Algeria. Situated at the base of a lofty moun¬ 
 tain near the sea, it rises to the table-land, round which 
 it is built almost in the form of a triangle, broken by a 
 ravine, which divides it into two almost equal parts, con¬ 
 nected by an embankment; the water which flows 
 between them being carried off by a subterranean 
 passage. 
 
CHERCHELL TO MASCARA. 165 . 
 
 On the heights are gardens, and at this point a 
 bridge unites the old Casbah with the quarter St. 
 Andre. 
 
 Externally this city presents an imposing aspect, 
 which it owes to the extent of the gulf on which it 
 stands, to the chain of high mountains in its background, 
 and above all to formidable fortifications and turreted 
 walls, some of which have been erected by the Spaniards 
 and others by the French. 
 
 The fort Santa Cruz, conspicuously placed on the 
 summit of the Ramnra, commands all below it. Viewed 
 as a whole, the place has a grand and warlike character. 
 Not less striking is the appearance of Oran and the gulf, 
 when seen from above. 
 
 As a town the capital of the province has a some¬ 
 what mixed and irregular lock, which is caused by three 
 different styles of architecture—Arab, Spanish, and 
 French—being brought together, and forming one hetero¬ 
 geneous ensemble ; but the Arab buildings are so 
 exceeded in number by the European structures, 
 spacious squares, wide streets, elegant and modem 
 houses, that it might be taken for a Franco-Spanish 
 ■city. 
 
 The elevated esplanade de Letang, with its fine trees 
 and sea-views, is equal to any in Europe. 
 
 Oran is indeed a very delightful town ; and, if our 
 distinguished poet Campbell liked it when it was under 
 the Algerian Regency, it is now, with the advantages of 
 civilisation, a much more desirable place to live in. 
 
 The temperature is here a little higher than it is at 
 Algiers, and it rains even less in winter than it does 
 
 there. 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. * 
 
 166 
 
 The number of inhabitants is fifty thousand, which is 
 not greatly exceeded in the capital of the colony. 
 
 Oran has two ports ; the one nearer to it is at 
 present but an insecure harbour, although a breakwater 
 and lighthouse have been constructed, and other im¬ 
 provements are in progress. Steamboats and sailing 
 vessels enter it in fine weather; but, when the sea is 
 rough, they are obliged to go to Mers-el Kebir, situated 
 six miles farther along the gulf, it being separated from 
 Oran by a tongue of land called la Moune. - In this 
 magnificent roadstead there is room for the united 
 navies of France and England to ride at anchor, for it 
 is a spacious and secure harbour, which has not its equal 
 on the Algerian coast. A fine natural position and 
 strong fortifications by land and sea have made the 
 African port as formidable as the not far distant Gibral¬ 
 tar, on its impregnable rock in Europe. 
 
 The route from Oran to Mers-el-Kebir, following the 
 beautiful bay, is one of the most picturesque in the 
 world ; a great part of it is cut out of precipitous cliffs, 
 at a fearful height above the sea ; a hedge of aloes, 
 which borders the road protecting the traveller from 
 danger at this dizzy elevation. 
 
 Midway between Oran and Mers-el-Kebir is a 
 charming spot, called les Bains de la Reine , from the cir¬ 
 cumstance of a Spanish princess having, some three 
 hundred years ago, come to drink of its water. 
 
 Shortly after leaving Oran for Mascara, we passed a 
 village inhabited exclusively by a black population— 
 three to four thousand. These natives present very 
 singular types, from the thick-lipped negroes to the 
 copper-coloured denizens of the Sahara ; all offering to 
 
CUERCHELL TO MASCARA. 
 
 167 
 
 the physiognomist or painter, who wishes to study pecu¬ 
 liarities of character and shades of colour in the de¬ 
 scendants of Ham an opportunity not often to be met 
 with. 
 
 The country over which we were travelling was wild 
 and romantic ; at every turn in the road, every rise in 
 the undulating ground, the view changed. One moment 
 we were in a deep wooded pass, at another our path lay 
 between bare rocks and huge blocks of stone, which had 
 been thrown together and heaped up into strange and 
 fantastic forms by some convulsion of nature. 
 
 On broad patches of red earth grew wild olives or 
 stately cedars ; dotted about singly, they looked like 
 outposts of the forests in the distance, and well did 
 their sombre masses harmonise with the soil on which 
 they stood. Here, out of clusters of evergreen oaks 
 rose the white dome of a marabout ; there, we saw the 
 gourbi of the Arabs grouped like Indian wigwams, and 
 near them a few natives added their long-robed figures 
 to the picture. 
 
 Farther off in the middle distance, dark clumps of 
 trees, the jujube, thuia, and the carob, spotted the land¬ 
 scape, whilst troops of camels, mules, and asses, with 
 Arab riders and drivers, were seen winding up the 
 sinuosities of the way. It was altogether a Salvator 
 Rosa-like scene, savage and characteristic, such as 
 nature paints to contrast with her gentler creations. 
 
 As we approached nearer to Mascara the slopes of 
 the hills covered with vineyards, tobacco plantations, 
 gardens, and orchards rich in fruit trees, replaced the 
 wilder vegetation we had left behind. 
 
 Mascara, surrounded by an indented wall, stands on 
 
i68 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 two eminences, separated by the river Oued Toudman. 
 With its terrace-roofs, domes, and minarets rising out 
 of cypress and olive-trees, it is one of those Oriental¬ 
 looking towns which are so characteristic and pleasing to 
 the eye. 
 
 A fine prospect extends over the beautiful plain of 
 Eghris ; but the environs, with their orange groves, 
 vineyards, and pleasure grounds, present on every side a 
 smiling sunlit landscape; and what contributes to the 
 charming aspect of the place are the public gardens gay 
 with flowers—those never-failing ornaments of every 
 Algerian town. 
 
 Abd-el-Kader was born (1806) at the hamlet 
 Guetna, near Mascara. This celebrated Marabout is ot 
 the tribe of the Hachems, which is said to be descended 
 from the Fatimite Caliphs, and consequently from the 
 Prophet himself. 
 
 Abd-el-Kader, when a young man in 1832, was 
 chosen Prince of the Faithful by his countrymen, and 
 established the seat of his power at Mascara, which was 
 his favourite residence. 
 
 This city was built by the Turks, on the site of a 
 Roman town, of which in the present day scarcely any 
 vestiges are to be seen. Under the government of the 
 Pachas Mascara acquired great prosperity, and like 
 Tlemsen became the seat of learning; 16 they were 
 the Oxford and Cambridge of the Muslims. 
 
 Mascara, about 1,800 feet above sea-level, has a 
 healthy climate ; but, being an inland town to the south 
 of Oran, the heat in summer, when the wind blows from 
 the Sahara, is greater than on the littoral. The sky is 
 
r CHERCHELL TO MASCARA . 
 
 169 
 
 usually cloudless, and the air in winter pure and bracing, 
 but sometimes cold. 
 
 From Mascara we travelled some distance on the 
 road to Tiaret, wishing to see something of the country 
 in that direction. 
 
 With this little deviation we shall close our journey, 
 denying ourselves the pleasure of the reader’s company 
 on our way back to Algiers ; but, before we separate, to 
 meet again on our second excursion, we would detain 
 him yet a while, that he may hear an Arab story which 
 we shall relate in the next chapter. 
 
 As we were about to take our places, we found that 
 the vacant seat in the coupe would be occupied by an 
 Arab chief with whom we were already acquainted, 
 having been presented to him at Mascara by a captain 
 of Spai's. This introduction from one of his own 
 countrymen broke through the taciturnity and reserve 
 which Orientals usually observe when in the society of 
 Europeans. He told us that he was going to see some 
 friends at the place where we intended to stop on the 
 road to Tiaret. 
 
 Our companion was a tall man, with the pure Arab 
 type of face, made to appear rather long than oval by a 
 black pointed beard, which contrasted with his white 
 burnous. He had dark eyes, quiet and thoughtful in 
 repose, but which, we afterwards found, lighted up and 
 sparkled . when excited by emotion. His mouth-ex¬ 
 pressed firmness and dignity of character, as Arab lips 
 generally do. It was a head which harmonised well 
 with the hood and drapery, like the head of a friar of the 
 middle ages, such as we see in pictures. Our fellow- 
 
170 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 traveller did not know much French, but spoke Spanish 
 fluently. We had left Mascara a couple of hours when, 
 pointing up a bye-path before which we passed, he 
 called our attention to a projecting rock at some 
 distance along it. 
 
 ‘ This spot,’ said he, ‘ was once the scene of an en¬ 
 counter with a lion, in which a Christian cavalier was 
 the hero.’ 
 
 We begged him to relate it to us. 
 
 ‘ It is rather a long story,’ he replied, ‘ in which the 
 meeting with the said is only an episode ; besides this, 
 it is a love story, which would require more time to tell 
 than is left us before we halt for breakfast; but, as you 
 are not going farther, and I remain at the inn, you shall 
 have it when we take our coffee.’ 
 
 We thanked him for his promise, anticipating great 
 pleasure in listening to a tale of Arab life, to be told in 
 a language which unites the softness and grace of Latin 
 with the strength and figurative style it has derived 
 from Arabic. 
 
 Arrived at the inn, our friend kept his word. 
 Breakfast over, we sat down to our coffee and cigars 
 under the shade of a magnificent olive, which spread its 
 branches invitingly at some paces from the house. 
 
 For a few moments our companion remained silent, 
 calling up his recollections as he slowly smoked his 
 cigarette and sipped his mocha; after this he began his 
 story, which we shall tell in our own way, keeping 
 however as near To the Arab’s diction as our memory 
 and the English idiom will allow. 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 OURIDA. 
 
 Natura la fece, e poi ruppe la stampa. 17 —Ariosto. 
 
 Egli mirolla, ed ammiro la bella 
 Sembianza, e d’essa si compiacque, e n’arse. 
 
 Oh meraviglia ! Amor, ch’ appena e nato, 
 
 Gia grande vola, e gia trionfa armato.— Tasso. 
 
 Some years after the Christians first landed in Alge- 
 lia, when the Crescent had begun to pale, and the Cross^ 
 of the Roumi—the symbol of another religion—was 
 carried with their standard into the land of the Faithful,, 
 none of the brave sons of Ismael defended the country 
 more valiantly, or had greater faith in its ultimate triumph, 
 than Ali ben Ahmed ben Ai'ssa. 1 What has come to pass, 
 was piedestined,’ he was wont to say ; ‘ and so surely is 
 it written in the book of Fate, that we shall drive out 
 the enemies of the Prophet, and the Crescent will again 
 shed its soft light over the land which is not theirs.’ 
 
 Ali ben Ahmed was a chief of the great tent, a man 
 in authority, Amin el Ourtiena, whose tribe had struggled 
 hard in the fight for independence, and it was one of the 
 last to submit to the conquerors. 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 372 
 
 But those days had passed away, and now the Chris¬ 
 tians were masters where the Pachas had ruled. 
 
 The sword and spear of Ali ben Ahmed were ‘ hung 
 up for monuments,’ and his long mekahla served but to 
 hunt the sultan of the desert. He no longer dwelt in 
 the tented field. His home was now an Arab castle in 
 the country, built in the Moorish style, its bright turrets 
 and marabouts rising out of a grove of dark cypress, 
 almond, and flat-topped pine-trees. Around were exten¬ 
 sive grounds, shady walks, and a garden with fairest 
 flowers. 
 
 All this, and much more, had the old warrior to con¬ 
 sole him for what his country had lost; but in this de¬ 
 lightful abode Ali ben Ahmed would have remained un¬ 
 happy, brooding over the times that were gone, if Allah 
 had not granted him one great blessing, more precious 
 than house and land. Ali ben Ahmed ben Aissa had a 
 •daughter—a flower more beautiful than any his garden 
 could produce—a being more perfect than he had ever 
 imagined he should see, when the Prophet would seize 
 him by the tuft of hair, which grew alone, like an oasis, 
 on his shaven head, and draw him up to the Musssulman’s 
 heaven, where houris bloom in eternal youth, bright as 
 the roses in his own verandah. 
 
 Ourida—such was the name of the lovely maid— 
 was the delight of her father’s eyes ; and her voice, when 
 she opened her coral lips, was music to his ears : she was 
 indeed a wonderful creation of a clime where nature per¬ 
 fects her choicest works. Fifteen summers had developed 
 charms which no man could contemplate without feeling 
 the power of beauty and innocence. 
 
 But Ourida had been seen by none except her father 
 
OUR ID A. 
 
 173 
 
 and her female attendants ; for, when she went forth, her 
 face—according to the custom of her country—was 
 
 covered with the adjar, and her graceful form was hidden 
 beneath flowing drapery. 
 
 This child of nature had hair black as the wing of 
 the raven ; her dark eyes were soft as those of the r’ezala, 
 their long lashes threw a tender shade below them,’ 
 whilst above they were arched over by brows to which 
 no dye could lend a deeper tint. Faultless was the 
 mould in which her features were cast, even the jealous 
 adjai could not conceal the perfect line of her nose. 
 Her small mouth with its pearly teeth, and the bloom 
 on her cheek, which neither flower nor fruit could equal, 
 would have driven an Oriental poet to despair, if lie 
 attempted to find anything to compare them to. 
 
 If the featuies of her oval face were beautiful, in her 
 person she united the three things which Arab taste 
 requires, for her hands, ears, and feet were such as only 
 true blood can generate. When she walked in her 
 
 father’s grounds, her light step scarcely bent the flowers 
 she trod upon. 
 
 The Angel of Death had called away Ourida’s mother 
 when she brought this lovely child into the world ; but 
 Ali ben Ahmed’s wife had looked upon its face—which 
 seemed to her bright and celestial as the unclouded full 
 moon in the darkness of night—ere her spirit flew to 
 regions beyond the luminaries. 
 
 Some time before this event, when war and confusion 
 were spiead over the land, a beloved sister of Ali ben 
 
 Ahmed had disappeared from her home, and he saw her 
 no more. 
 
 During a season he grieved for his wife and his sister ; 
 
i 74 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 but he was soon called away to the field of contention, 
 when he confided the infant to the care of a black female 
 
 slave. 18 
 
 This slave, whose name was Alawee, had been long 
 in the family of Ali ben Ahmed ; she loved the child of 
 her former mistress as if it had been her own offspring, 
 bestowing on it the tenderness of a mother. 
 
 Whilst the life of Ali ben Ahmed was a scene of 
 adventure and vicissitude, that of his daughter was 
 monotonous and still, like water over whose surface 
 gentle zephyr breathes but disturbs not the depths 
 below. 
 
 Thus she grew in grace and loveliness, till her fifteenth 
 summer, when, like a flower in bloom, she burst from 
 childhood to adolescence. 
 
 Now, though the seclusion in which Ourida lived 
 allowed her not to be seen, it was said that Ali, ben 
 Ahmed’s daughter was beautiful; for beauty concealed 
 is made known to fame, as perfume proclaims the 
 rose beyond the garden where blooms the queen of 
 flowers. 
 
 Thus it came to pass that Hassan ben Abed, one of 
 the companions in arms of Ourida s father, a man of 
 large possessions and a Cheik, asked the hand of his 
 daughter in marriage. This chief counted the same 
 number of years as Ali ben Ahmed. Together they had 
 fought against the Rounds; so Ali ben Ahmed refused 
 him not. 
 
 When this news was imparted to Ourida, she bowed 
 her graceful head, and only replied, ‘ I hear and obey.’ 
 
 To her the tidings were like the splash of a pebble 
 thrown into the tranquil lake, which troubles the water 
 
OUR ID A. 
 
 175 
 
 for an instant, after which it remains placid and motion¬ 
 less as before. 
 
 Preparations for the wedding were going on when, 
 one Friday, Ourida and her attendant went—according 
 to the custom of Arab women—to the cemetery to pray. 
 On their return, when they arrived near their garden, 
 believing themselves to be unobserved, the lady removed 
 the covering from her face. 
 
 At this moment a cavalier, mounted on a noble steed, 
 emerged from a wood, which had hitherto concealed him. 
 Ourida replaced her adjar and entered the gate; her 
 large black eyes had however involuntarily fallen on the 
 manly form of the stranger, and that furtive glance had 
 left an impression on Ali ben Ahmed’s daughter which 
 was henceforth to be a part of her nature. 19 
 
 When she returned to her father’s dwelline so 
 entirely was she changed, that it seemed strange to her 
 that nothing was transformed there but herself. A new 
 light had broken in upon her soul. Ourida, whose un¬ 
 troubled existence had never been excited by pleasure 
 or depressed by sorrow, had suddenly acquired know¬ 
 ledge and feelings foreign to the indifference with which 
 women of her country regard the events of life, for 
 whom the sun rises and sets day after day, marking new 
 epochs and bringing changes in nature, but none in 
 themselves. Ourida had learned to distinguish this 
 state from one full of new sensations, in which hopes 
 and fears agitate the mind, causing it to fluctuate be¬ 
 tween pleasure and pain ; in a word, she had discovered 
 the difference between mere existence—and life. The 
 daughter of Eve had seen the forbidden fruit, and no 
 longer cared for the flowers in her father’s garden. 
 
176 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 As Ben Ahmed’s daughter looked upon the robes, jewels, 
 and all the paraphernalia prepared for her marriage with 
 the man of her father’s choice, her mind became 
 troubled and the colour forsook her cheeks. 
 
 When her faithful companion observed the dejection 
 into which the Lady Ai'ssa had fallen, she wondered 
 greatly and addressed her in these words : — 
 
 < O my mistress ! be not angry with thy slave if she 
 speak to thee the words of truth and affection. Since 
 thou hast seen the stranger on the black horse thou art 
 no longer thyself, and, much I fear me that love, the 
 enemy of peace and tranquillity, the tyrant passion, 
 which assumes every disguise, has entered thy heart to 
 distract thee. This stranger in whose form he has 
 appeared thou may’st never again behold ; allow not 
 then thy thoughts to dwell on what may be only the 
 remembrance of a moment. Reflect, O my mistress, I 
 conjure thee, that thou art the bride of the noble Hassan 
 ben Abed, thy father’s friend, and a chief among the 
 Arabs. This comely foreigner, to judge from his attire, 
 is doubtless a Roumi, and an enemy to us and to Allah 
 — whose name be exalted.’ 
 
 The Lady Ai'ssa made no answer, but remained 
 immersed in her own reflections. Many days passed 
 after this, and often did Alawee renew her admonitions 
 and repeat her remonstrances, yet Ourida heeded her 
 not, but remained changed as before. Once only had 
 she spoken in reply to the expostulations of her faithful 
 attendant; this was when she forbade Alawee to tell 
 her father of the incident at the garden gate. 
 
 Who was the gallant horseman the sight of whom 
 had so affected the daughter of Ali ben Ahmed ? His 
 
OURIDA. 
 
 177 
 
 dress united something of the Eastern and European 
 character. His face also had the Arab type, blended 
 with an expression which spoke of another country, 
 x oung and handsome, he had an air of grave dignity 
 suited to his manly bearing, but which usually belongs 
 to men of double his years. When he saw the lovety 
 daughter of Ali ben Ahmed he was struck with astonish¬ 
 ment and confounded with her beauty, for in all his 
 tittvds he had seen no one equal to that peerless maid 
 On beholding her he seemed to have found something 
 he had lost; a creation of his fancy, which he had never 
 sought in the world, for he thought it impossible such a 
 being could exist. When he reviewed his past life, it 
 appeared as if he had journeyed through a waste. He felt 
 like the mariner who, having been adrift at sea—of whose 
 v atcr he could not drink—finds on shore a crystal 
 spring at which he can quench his thirst. 
 
 Wrapt in thought he allowed his horse to wander 
 where it liked, whilst he gave himself up to devising 
 plans for again seeing the beautiful being who had 
 
 appeared before him. Thus occupied we leave him for 
 the present. 
 
 Muse on, sanguine youth ; if thou art doomed to 
 fail, thy steed may carry thee to a desert or to a para¬ 
 dise, life will have no more charms for thee ; but if thou 
 
 art born under a fortunate star, thou may’st see thy love 
 again. 
 
 N 
 
73 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 OURIDA. 
 
 Far other feelings Love hath brought— 
 
 Her soul all flame, her brow all sadness, 
 
 She now has but the one dear thought, 
 
 And thinks that o’er, almost to madness !— Moore. 
 
 —Ma, qual pensiero, o figlia, 
 
 Cosi ti turba ! L’inquieto sguardo 
 Attorno volgi, e di pallor ti pingi ! Alfieki. 
 
 ALTHOUGH Ali ben Ahmed regarded most things in 
 life with the stoicism which believes that it was destined 
 to take place, and though this often made him in¬ 
 different to all that happened, it did not prevent him 
 from remarking the extraordinary change which had 
 come over his child. At first he had attributed it to 
 some passing whim or caprice ; to a phase of. mental 
 languor, which nothing would be so likely to dispel as 
 her marriage with Hassan ben Abed ; so for a time he 
 abstained from speaking to her on the subject, but, 
 when the unwonted mood into which Ourida had fallen 
 assumed the appearance of settled melancholy, Ali ben 
 Ahmed resolved to ascertain the cause of the alteiation. 
 
 If the old chief had been born on the shores opposite 
 
OURIDA. 
 
 179 
 
 to his own country, instead of being a son of Algeria, it 
 might have occurred to him that the change in his 
 daughter was not unconnected with what he had told her 
 about the disposal of her hand to Hassan ben Abed ; 
 but such a motive would have been the last which a 
 Muslim would suspect, where it was for him to 
 command and for her to obey. Even Christian parents 
 do not always consult the feelings of their children in a 
 matter which decides their happiness or misery for life. 
 How much less does such a sentimental consideration 
 enter the head, or touch the heart, of a Mussulman 
 whose religion and country’s custom have made master 
 of their fate. 
 
 Ali ben Ahmed wished only to discover the reason 
 of his daughter’s reserve, and of her apparent indiffer¬ 
 ence to all that had hitherto given her pleasure Pfe 
 one day therefore summoned Ourida, whom he greatly 
 loved, into his presence, and thus addressed her 
 
 ‘ Ourida, my child, let me know the reason of the 
 sadness which overshadows thy spirit, like a cloud 
 comes over the sky on a summer’s day. Of late I know 
 thee no longer, so greatly art thou changed. When I 
 go forth in the morning coldly do’st thou see me depart, 
 and when I come back in the evening thy gladdened 
 look no longer welcomes my return. Has the -evil eye 
 fascinated thee with its ill-omened glance ? ’ 
 
 Nevei before had Ourida kept a secret from her 
 father ; nay, till now her guileless bosom could not have 
 harboured a thought which was not reflected on her 
 open countenance. She therefore felt abashed and em¬ 
 barrassed under the searching look of Ali ben Ahmed. 
 She knew her father too well to tell him what had 
 
 N 2 
 
I So ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 happened; but, being constrained to make some answer, 
 she for a time prevaricated with the truth, and assigned 
 many motives such as might have suggested themselves 
 to the artful mind of a girl brought up in a less simple 
 state of society; so easily does deceit and cunning 
 follow the first step taken in a wrong direction. 
 
 Seeing that what she said did not satisfy Ben 
 Ahmed, who felt instinctively that Ourida had not di¬ 
 vulged the true cause of her dejection, she resolved, 
 whilst avowing her repugnance to marry Hassan, to 
 conceal the circumstance which had occasioned it, and 
 in its place substitute a plausible pretext, which she 
 took from the resources of her own imagination. 
 
 After a pause she thus resumed :— 
 
 ‘ When I heard from thy lips that I must wed 
 Hassan ben Abed, I answered as became one who has 
 no choice ; but know, O my father, that in the night 
 which followed the day on which thy will was made 
 known, my mother appeared before me in a vision, and 
 warned me not to marry this man. O my father, thou, 
 who hast known thy daughter when a happy child, 
 would’st not see her an unfortunate wife. Thou wilt not 
 disregard the admonition of my mother.’ 
 
 Now, when Ali ben Ahmed heard these words the 
 light grew dark before his eyes; for he was greatly 
 moved. As an Arab he was superstitious, and the story 
 of the dream made an impression on him, which he was 
 unwilling to avow to Ourida ; but his anger was kindled 
 at her disobedience; he, however, repressed his dis¬ 
 pleasure, for, like a prudent Mussulman, he had as much 
 command over his passions as he had over his own 
 
OURIDA. 
 
 jSi 
 
 Arabian charger; besides which, great was the love he 
 bore to Ourida ; he therefore rebuked her as follows:— 
 
 ‘ Thy mother, O my child, never disobeyed me when 
 alive, and her spirit would not return from the Prophet’s 
 paradise to counsel thee to be undutiful to thy father. 
 Thy dream was but a distempered fancy, arising from 
 the brooding sorrow which, like the shadow that passes 
 over the moon, has darkened thy joyous nature ; such 
 caprices are unworthy of thy father’s daughter. Pre¬ 
 pare to fulfil the engagement I have made with Hassan 
 ben Abed, nor again venture to oppose thy will to 
 mine.’ 
 
 With these words he left Ourida, without giving her 
 time to reply. 
 
182 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXL 
 
 OUR ID A. 
 
 She was a phantom of delight 
 When first she gleamed upon my sight; 
 
 A lovely apparition.—W ordsworth. 
 
 £) 5arte ©efnfucft/ ffifjeS ^offett/ 
 
 £>er erften Stebc golbne 3eit/ 
 
 Sag 2fu$e ffef)t ben 4Mmmel offeii/ 
 
 ©g fcfycelgt bag £er$ in ©eligfeit.—S chiller. 
 
 Long had don Enrique de Gonzales, such was the name 
 of the rider of the black horse, meditated on the plan he 
 should adopt to enable him agam to see the beautiful 
 maid who had captivated his soul. 
 
 Even if he should succeed in this, he did not conceal 
 from himself the difficulties—apparently insuperable— 
 which lay in his way, although good fortune should 
 accompany him. How was he, a stranger and a Roumi. 
 to become united to one of another faith ? Would a 
 Mahometan family, embittered by the recent invasion of 
 their country by the Christians, whom its people had so 
 long defied and held in contempt, consent to her mar¬ 
 riage with a Spaniard, a son of the land tradition had 
 taught them to hate, even more than they hated the 
 other enemies of the Prophet ? 
 
OURIDA. 
 
 i *3 
 
 But when was youth and hope ever discouraged in 
 pursuit of happiness ? 
 
 He confided in his propitious star, and trusted that 
 something might occur that should throw light across 
 his path, which seemed at present overcast by the dark¬ 
 ness of night. It appeared evident to him that he must 
 try to procure an interview with the attendant he had 
 seen in company with the lady of his thoughts, and 
 then by every means in his power endeavour to induce 
 the servant to assist him in bringing about a meeting 
 with her mistress. 
 
 With this design he now bent his steps daily towards 
 the abode of Ali ben Ahmed’s daughter, hoping to 
 meet her companion either leaving or returning to the 
 house. 
 
 On the sixth day after that which had formed an 
 epoch in his life, he saw Alawee leave the dwelling 
 alone. Although it was only the servant of the maiden 
 of his dreams whom he was going to accost, he felt him¬ 
 self more embarrassed than he had ever been before. 
 Unperceived he followed her some time, till she arrived 
 at a retired spot. 
 
 For such an interview the cavalier possessed a great 
 advantage in knowing the language and the manners of 
 the country. 
 
 Appearing before Alawee, he began by calling to 
 her mind how he had been so fortunate as to see her 
 lady with her on the well-remembered day. At first the 
 confidant of Ourida endeavoured to avoid him ; but his 
 modest manner, pleasing demeanour, and the earnest¬ 
 ness of his purpose at last overcame her scruples ; after 
 which she entered without reserve into the subject; but 
 
184 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 by no means did she, or could she, encourage his suit. 
 Her mistress, she told him, had been brought up almost 
 as secluded as a nun—devotees in his own country of 
 whom she had heard, but did not comprehend why they 
 thus sacrificed themselves. She then informed him of 
 Ali ben Ahmed’s resolution to bestow the hand of his 
 daughter on an Arab chief, one of his former companions 
 in arms, and that the marriage was soon to take place. 
 ‘ Ourida’s father,’ she said, Avould not break his word, 
 least of all would he do so in order to marry his child 
 to a man of another country and of another religion.’ 
 
 Although Don Enrique had foreseen that he would 
 have many obstacles to encounter before he could obtain 
 this pearl of great price, he was almost overcome by the 
 confident tone and the unfavourable disclosures of 
 Ourida’s servant. But what most affected him was to 
 hear that another had asked, and had obtained, the 
 promise of the hand he so ardently sought for himself. 
 
 At the thought of a rival a keen pang of jealousy 
 passed through his breast. On this point therefore he 
 questioned Alawee most closely. She told him all she 
 knew, which was that Hassan ben Abed had not seen 
 her mistress. She reminded the cavalier that, amongst 
 Arabs, marriages are arranged by the parents. 
 
 ‘As to Hassan ben Abed,’ added Alawee, ‘he is a 
 personage of her father’s age, reputed to be rich, but 
 covetous, a man in whose estimation the wealth of the 
 bride was probably as valuable as the beauty of her 
 person, which could be known to him only by report.’ 
 
 The concluding remarks of Alawee offered Don 
 Enrique some consolation for the pain the first part of 
 the conversation had caused him ; and, with this impres- 
 
OURIDA. 
 
 185 
 
 sion on his mind, be resolved to ask no more questions 
 about the lady, but to exert all his eloquence and power 
 of persuasion to dispose the confidant to favour his suit 
 with her mistress, to tell Ourida of his love, and then to 
 implore that charming maid to grant him an interview, 
 even if she were unwilling to remove her adjar. To in¬ 
 duce Alawee to intercede for him was in fact the chief 
 object of the meeting. 
 
 \ 
 
 ‘When the direct course is open,’ said the cavalier, 
 ‘it is not right to diverge from the straight path. Hap¬ 
 pier lovers can seek a father’s consent to their union, but 
 I must wait till another revolution of Fortune’s wheel 
 turns up something in my favour, ere I can present 
 myself before Ali ben Ahmed and ask the hand of his 
 daughter. Where the usual means fail us,’ further urged 
 Don Enrique, ‘ we may adopt such as would be improper 
 under other circumstances. Therefore do I beg thee, 
 Alawee, and supplicate thy mistress, to hold my presump¬ 
 tion excused, if I resort to the only plan left for speak¬ 
 ing to her I adore.’ 
 
 There was something sophistical in this reasoning 
 which did not escape even the intelligence of Ourida’s 
 companion, who thought that peculiar circumstances 
 could not make that right which is wrong in itself, but 
 she was too little of a casuist to argue the point. She 
 therefore rejected the proposed mediation ; but so elo¬ 
 quent was the cavalier, and so passionate were his en¬ 
 treaties, that she was at last compelled to submit; this 
 she did only on condition that the interview should be 
 short, and that any other meeting must depend entirely 
 on the willingness or the disinclination of Ourida to grant 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 186 
 
 it, without further intercession being demanded on the 
 part of her servant. 
 
 Having conceded so much, she directed the cavalier 
 to proceed the next day—which was Friday, when Ouri- 
 da and her attendant would visit the cemetery—to a spot 
 she and her mistress must pass in leaving the hallowed 
 ground. 
 
 It is a general belief among Mahometans that the 
 souls of the dead return to their graves every Friday. 
 The surviving relations therefore, by going to the burial- 
 place on the Arab Sabbath, imagine themselves to be 
 once more with the departed, whom they loved when 
 alive on earth. 
 
 Don Enrique, too happy to have obtained the promise 
 he had solicited, put an end to the interview by pressing 
 on Alawee the acceptance of a bracelet of some value; 
 such as please all Moorish women, and have a particular 
 charm for the class to which Ourida’s servant belonged ; 
 nevertheless she declined to accept the present till the 
 cavalier should have prospered in his suit; ‘ for,’ said she, 
 ‘ if the obstacles should prove insuperable I shall have to 
 blame myself for my share in the transaction, but if 
 Allah—whose name be exalted—should accomplish 
 what now appears impossible, I shall remain in the ser¬ 
 vice of thy wife when thou art united to her, and then 
 can I accept the gift thou now so generously ofiferest 
 me.’ 
 
 When Alawee informed her mistress of what had 
 happened she was greatly astonished. Many were the 
 questions she put to her attendant ; after which she made 
 her relate exactly all that had passed in her conference 
 with the cavalier. Ourida’s state of indifference to all 
 
OURIDA. 
 
 187 
 
 about her had suddenly become changed into concen¬ 
 trated interest in one subject. Alawee now asked the 
 lady what she purposed to do in regard to meeting the 
 cavalier. 
 
 After a short reflection Ourida replied :— 
 
 ‘Know, O Alawee, that I seem to have no will of my 
 own in the question ; I feel myself drawn by an irresisti¬ 
 ble attraction to do, what both the custom of our country 
 and the modesty of our sex forbid ; verily I have no 
 choice,’ she added ingenuously, ‘ although it appears free 
 to me to act as I like. What is decreed must be accom¬ 
 plished ; we shall therefore keep the appointment.’ 
 
 The next day, after leaving the cemetery, the lady 
 and her companion, on approaching the place where 
 they were to meet Don Enrique, saw the cavalier awaiting 
 their arrival. 
 
 When he perceived Ali ben Ahmed’s daughter and 
 her servant, he made a profound obeisance to the lady 
 in the respectful and ceremonious manner of his country¬ 
 men when addressing a sehora, a formality they have 
 adopted from the Moors. 
 
 He thanked her for the honour she had done him ; 
 and, after a just homage to her beauty, he proceeded to 
 plead his cause with the feeling and ardour which his 
 passion and her presence inspired. 
 
 Eloquence persuades when it proceeds from convic¬ 
 tion ; and sympathy—the connecting link which carries 
 impressions from one breast to another—made her 
 believe what he said. Thus Ourida listened like a 
 fascinated bird, which is unable to fly from the charmer. 
 The novelty of her situation and the tender accents of 
 her lover affected the Arab girl in a very different way 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 188 
 
 from that in which they would have moved a Christian 
 damsel. Ourida had felt the power of love when she 
 first saw its object, but its passionate language was new 
 to her ear. Brought up in seclusion and accustomed to 
 the monotonous life of her father’s house, her soul dilated 
 whilst she listened to the words of the cavalier, as 
 flowers open to the dew of the morning. Like the warm 
 light spread over the landscape, this charmed hour in her 
 existence seemed brightened by the rays of the sun. 
 
 ‘ Idol of my heart, delight of my thoughts,’ exclaimed 
 Don Enrique—in the flowery language of her country 
 and of his own—‘from the happy moment when I saw 
 thee enter thy dwelling, thou hast been present to my 
 mind, nor is thy beautiful face now concealed from me 
 by thy adjar. Pardon, O my beloved, the presumption 
 of my love. Well I know that nothing can make me 
 worthy of thee ; although my birth and lineage are such 
 as would satisfy thy father, were no other obstacle 
 opposed to an alliance of the illustrious houses of Ali 
 ben Ahmed and Enrique de Gonzales. Our faiths differ, 
 yet may all difficulties be overcome.’ 
 
 Ourida, who had felt indescribable pleasure in listen ¬ 
 ing to the cavalier, confessed that he did not love alone; 
 but she added that he had left for the last, the point 
 which was first in her estimation, for ‘O my lord,’ said 
 she modestly and timidly, ‘ I comprehend not how thou 
 wilt obtain the consent of my father.’ 
 
 ‘ If a Muslim woman,’ replied the cavalier, ‘ had not 
 been permitted to marry a Christian, I should not be 
 here speaking to my adored.’ 
 
 Ourida was about to ask for an explanation of this 
 
OURIDA. 
 
 189. 
 
 last remark, when Alawee admonished the lovers that it 
 was time to separate. 
 
 Don Enrique promised that he would procure an in¬ 
 troduction to Ali ben Ahmed, as a step towards the 
 attainment of a result, the difficulties of which he did 
 not disguise from himself, but he was careful to conceal 
 them as far as possible from Ourida, trusting that^some 
 fortunate accident might yet favour his suit. 
 
 The maiden was fain to be satisfied with vague hope ; 
 for what is ardently desired is easily believed. 
 
 They then separated, but not before Don Enrique had 
 obtained from Ourida a promise to meet him again. 
 
 These appointments had been repeated more than 
 once, and vows of love and constancy had been repeated 
 still oftener, when a circumstance took place which led 
 to results affecting the loves of Ourida and the cavalier, 
 which could not have been foreseen in the event itself 
 which we shall proceed to describe. 
 
190 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 OURIDA. 
 
 Non vo’ che piu favelle, 
 Malvagio traditor, che alia tua onta 
 Io portero di te vere novelle.— Dante. 
 
 Ma non si, che paura non mi desse 
 La vista, che m’ apparve, d’un leone. 
 
 Questi parea, che contra me venesse 
 
 Con la test’ alta e con rabbiosa fame ; 
 
 Si che parea che l’aerne temesse.— Inferno , Canto I. 
 
 Ourida’s suitor, Hassan ben Abed, about this time 
 invited Ali ben Ai'ssa and some other friends to a lion- 
 hunt. One of these was known to Don Enrique, who 
 had often expressed a desire to take part in a fight with 
 the sai'd; the Arab therefore brought his Christian ac¬ 
 quaintance with him to form one of the party. We must 
 now relate how the proposed expedition was brought 
 about. 
 
 In another part of this work we shall describe the 
 usual manner of hunting the lion, when a combat with 
 the king of beasts is not the result of a chance encounter. 
 On occasions like the present the Arabs endeavour to 
 find out the route he takes in coming to their village ; 
 
OURIDA. 
 
 191 
 
 and, having ascertained this, they proceed to waylay 
 him, being almost sure from their knowledge of his 
 habits that the redoubted enemy of their flocks and 
 herds, when he repeats his aggression, will continue to 
 pass along the same path. On the day appointed for 
 the purpose they take up positions—with a due regard 
 to their own safety—availing themselves of whatever lies 
 in the road which may contribute to it, such as a tree 
 high enough to make it impossible for the lion to reach 
 them, or they station themselves on some inaccessible 
 rock. 
 
 Whenever the king of the Atlas is observed to follow 
 a particular tract several times, even if his object be not 
 apparent, the Arabs go to the chase for the love of sport 
 and excitement, or to obtain the reward offered by 
 government for each wild animal that is killed. 
 
 Now it happened that a servant of Hassan ben 
 Abed, returning home at dusk, had twice seen a lion 
 pass at a short distance from the spot where he had 
 been at work in his master’s fields. Having noticed this, 
 he watched for it on the third day, and, seeing it take 
 the same road as before, he informed Hassan of the 
 fact. 
 
 Although Hassan ben Abed was generally disliked 
 by the other Arabs, who thought him covetous, inhos¬ 
 pitable, and false, he was in reality even worse than his 
 reputation. How he had contrived to ingratiate and 
 maintain himself in the good opinion of Ali ben Ahmed 
 was incomprehensible to them, and could only be attri¬ 
 buted to great duplicity and cunning on the part of 
 Ben Ai'ssa’s fellow-campaigner. 
 
 When Hassan ben Abed’s servant informed his 
 
192 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 master that he had seen a lion go several times in a 
 certain direction, a wicked thought—the offspring of his 
 
 avaricious disposition—suggested itself to the mind of 
 the latter. 
 
 ‘If,’ reflected Hassan, ‘ Ali ben Ahmed did not stand 
 in the way, Ourida’s husband would obtain his estates 
 conjointly with her hand.’ He therefore deliberated 
 with himself how he could conduct the preparations for 
 the combat with the formidable antagonist so as to 
 put Ali ben Ahmed in a situation of danger, which 
 would not be difficult if he examined the ground well 
 before posting the huntsmen, and assigning to each a 
 particular position. 
 
 This was his privilege as master of the hunt and 
 owner of the land on which it was to take place. So 
 Hassan ben Abed surveyed the scene of action previous 
 to the arrival of the party, on the day appointed for the 
 fight with the sba. To each was then designated the 
 spot he was to occupy. Ali ben Ahmed was stationed 
 before a projecting rock on the path along which the 
 lion was expected to pass. When it should be seen ap¬ 
 proaching the chief was to retire behind the cliff, and 
 not fire till the said came up. This was the post of 
 danger, for the lion always bounds towards the place 
 from whence the attack proceeds ; but, as Ali ben Ah¬ 
 med’s friend Hassan had chosen his own position on the 
 opposite side of the way, assistance from him would be 
 at hand if the first shot from his comrade’s mekahla did 
 not strike its object in the heart, or between the eyes 
 the only parts where the animal could be killed at 
 once. 
 
 At a lion-hunt the Arabs consider it polite to cede 
 
OUR ID A. 
 
 193 
 
 the post of honour, which is the post of danger, to any 
 European who joins them in such an enterprise. Habit 
 and personal courage render the natives of Algeria care¬ 
 less as to risking their own lives, but they are always in¬ 
 terested to see how the foreigner will behave who for 
 the first time faces the sultan of the desert . 20 
 
 On the present occasion Hassan ben Abed had 
 willed it otherwise ; for to his unknown rival he assigned 
 a place not far from Ali ben Ahmed. The rest of the 
 paity was stationed at some distance on the same road, 
 
 in case the lion should not make a stand where he would 
 be fired at. 
 
 The sun was sinking below the horizon when the 
 huntsmen took up their positions ; all was silence and 
 expectation. The tranquil aspect of nature was lighted 
 only by what remained of declining day ; but powder 
 was to speak, the loud voice of the deadly mekahla 
 was ready to disturb the repose of the scene as soon as 
 
 the unsuspecting lord of the forest should appear in the 
 pride of strength and power. 
 
 On such an evening well could the most formidable 
 of created beings, walking alone in conscious might, feel 
 secure from danger. What could he meet on his’way 
 which would not turn aside, and leave him monarch of 
 the road ? How many thousands of the human race 
 could he not defy, if they attacked him only with the 
 weapons nature has given to each! Through an army 
 of the peifidious sons of Adam could he march, as he 
 would pass through a herd of antelopes, killing one 
 only when he is hungry—not for the love of slaughter 
 or the lust of conquest. 
 
 After waiting some time, a shadowy form was seen 
 
 o 
 
194 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 moving along the road. As it came nearer, two fiery 
 balls, shining like stars in the twilight, were seen draw¬ 
 ing towards the spot where the company was stationed. 
 It was the sai'd, approaching with the slow and stately 
 step peculiar to this noble and dignified animal. 
 
 As he looked neither to the right nor to the left, Ali 
 ben Ahmed had only the chance of his ball striking the 
 heart. When the lion arrived opposite the rock which 
 had concealed his enemy the stillness of night was 
 broken by a sharp report and a loud roar, which echoed 
 amongst the hills and vibrated in the breast of every 
 huntsman. 
 
 Ali ben Ahmed did not miss his noble mark ; for 
 the lion, made savage by the treacherous shot, bounded 
 towards him, and Ali would have been torn to pieces as 
 quickly as the ball had left his mekahla, had not a saving 
 hand interposed between the infuriated beast and his 
 victim. 
 
 Ali ben Ahmed, thrown to the ground, and strug¬ 
 gling under the mighty grasp of the master of his fate, 
 supposed that it was his friend Hassan who had hastened 
 to his assistance ; he saw only the barrel of a rifle— 
 which touched the enormous head of the sai'd—dis¬ 
 charged over his own prostrate body. To rescue him 
 had been the inspiration of the critical moment. The 
 ball broke the massive jaw which was about to tear him 
 in pieces. The wounded animal, finding himself at¬ 
 tacked from another quarter, turned furiously on his 
 new aggressor, whom he bore to the earth and lacerated 
 with his terrible claws. Ali ben Ahmed, who had been 
 little hurt, so quickly was he saved from inevitable 
 death, now rose to assist and thank his brave deliverer. 
 
OURIDA. 
 
 *95 
 
 Lut what was his astonishment to see, instead of his 
 fi lend Hassan, the Roumi stranger writhing in the gripe 
 of the lion, and before he knew how to act in the fearful 
 ciisis, Don Enrique who had not for an instant lost 
 his piesence of mind—had plunged his yatagan deep 
 into the heart of the monster, which fell back mortally 
 stiicken, just as the Arabs who had been posted along 
 the load came to the spot where the struggle was 
 taking place. Although the death-blow had been given 
 by the cavalier, some more balls were fired at their 
 valiant foe, who, in making a last effort to avenge him¬ 
 self, fell dead at the feet of his enemies. 
 
 If Ourida s father—thanks to the devotion and 
 timely succour of the Christian—had received no serious 
 injury, less favourable was the condition of his noble 
 savioui, who now lay insensible on the field of combat. 
 
 A burnous, spiead out, was made into a litter, on 
 which the lifeless body of the Spaniard was laid. This 
 cloak, cariied by four Arabs, conveyed the wounded 
 cavalier to the house of Ali ben Ahmed by orders of 
 that chief, whose heart, oppressed with grief and over¬ 
 flowing with gratitude, yearned towards the brave 
 stranger who had saved his life, perhaps at the expense 
 of his own. Ali ben Ahmed despatched a servant to 
 tne nearest town for a European doctor. 
 
 W here was Hassan ben Abed, who had chosen his 
 place opposite the rock where his friend was stationed, 
 that he might come to his rescue in a moment of peril ? 
 
 From the instant Ben Ahmed had fired at the lion 
 Hassan had disappeared. Too often had the old soldier 
 confronted the sai'd, and too often had he fought against 
 the Roumis, for desertion on this occasion to be at- 
 
 o 2 
 
196 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 tributed to want of courage. Another motive must 
 therefore be sought for this extraordinary conduct, and 
 many were the conjectures made to account for it. The 
 suspicion of treachery which had been excited by his 
 forsaking Ali ben Ahmed was increased to conviction 
 on questioning Ben Hassan’s servant, who mentioned 
 his master’s strange behaviour when he first heard of 
 the lion ; his subsequent disposal of the hunting party, 
 and the post assigned to Ali ben Ahmed, who was to 
 rely on a support which depended on Hassan to give or 
 withdraw, served to confirm it. The object of this pre¬ 
 meditated perfidy became yet more apparent on consider¬ 
 ing the relation in which the two friends stood towards 
 each other, owing to the projected marriage of Hassan 
 with Ourida. 
 
197 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 OUR ID A. 
 
 With pleasures long resigned, 
 
 Lo ! Memory bursts the twilight of the mind, 
 
 Her dear delusions soothe his sinking soul.— Rogers. 
 
 Io vivro sempre in pene, 
 
 Io non avro piii bene ; 
 
 E tu chi sa se mai 
 
 Ti sovverrai di me !—Metastasio. 
 
 When Don Enrique de Gonzales first opened his eyes 
 after the state of insensibility in which he had continued 
 since he fell into the power of the lion, he found himself 
 lying in a strange house. A doctor was watching his 
 return to life, and Ali ben Ahmed was standing near his 
 couch anxiously awaiting the opinion of the physician 
 when his patient should recover consciousness. On re¬ 
 moving his dress in order to examine the wounds, a 
 closed locket, attached to a chain round his neck, had 
 been given to Ben Ahmed, who put it aside without 
 examination, intending to give back the medallion to his 
 suffering guest when he should be able to receive it. 
 
 The injuries inflicted on the cavalier when in the rude 
 embrace of the lion were very serious and caused much 
 pain. 
 
198 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 The doctor who had bandaged the wounds was a man 
 skilled in all the appliances of art ; Don Enrique could 
 not have fallen into better hands. He now Grave the 
 invalid a sleeping draught, but declined to offer an 
 opinion, before the next day at the earliest, as to the 
 possible result. 
 
 Till midnight Ali ben Ahmed sat by the bed of his 
 deliverer, who continued to sleep on from the effect of 
 the opiate. 
 
 When Ben Ahmed at length threw himself on a 
 sleeping divan in the same room, the exciting incident of 
 the day and the irritation of his own hurt—which though 
 slight was sometimes painful—kept him awake till near 
 morning, and when he at last fell into a troubled doze, 
 it was again to pass in a distorted form through what 
 had taken place during the day. He dreamed that as 
 soon as he was thrown to the ground by the terrible 
 beast it was suddenly changed into Hassan, who was 
 about to kill him with his hunting knife, when, lo ! his 
 long-lost sister seized the hand of the assassin as he was.^, 
 preparing to strike. After this the scene changed. Alf 
 found himself in a Christian temple. At the altar stood 
 his daughter Ourida, and by her side was a young ca- 
 valiei whose features he was trying to make out when he 
 awoke. 
 
 Having shaken off the troubled vision of the night 
 he betook himself to the bed of the invalid, who soon 
 after opened his eyes to the dim light, which was be^ 
 ginning to break into the sick man’s chamber. Ahmed 
 ben Aissa took his hot hand between his own, and, after 
 enquiring affectionately how he was, thus addressed his 
 young friend:— 
 
OUR ID A. 
 
 199 
 
 ‘ Many seem the hours of night to him, 0 my son, 
 who longs to see a wounded companion in the morning. 
 Endless have they appeared to me, for that companion 
 is my deliverer. With us Arabs he, who in a fight with 
 the lion, saves a man’s life, has achieved a greater and a 
 better deed than he who meets the sai'd in single combat. 
 The life thou hast saved I hold for thee, should good or 
 evil fortune permit Ben Ahmed to show that he is not 
 ungrateful. A service rendered leaves him debtor who 
 receives it; and should occasion serve, the Arab will do 
 for thee what thou hast done for him, nor think his 
 obligation cancelled. Should fate throw no opportunity 
 in my way, then, O my Christian rescuer, ask what thou 
 wilt, for nothing in my power shall be denied thee.’ 
 
 A faint smile passed over the pallid lips of the ca¬ 
 valier as he replied in a low voice :— 
 
 ‘ Promise not, for there are favours too great to ask, 
 as there are boons too precious to bestow.’ 
 
 Ali ben Ahmed was about to protest, when the doctor 
 entered the apartment. He was not well pleased to find 
 the master of the house in conversation with his patient, 
 and he at once forbade all excitement which could disturb 
 the invalid and retard his recovery. 
 
 Having felt his pulse and asked a few questions, the 
 physician prescribed some soothing medicine, and gave 
 a few directions; after which he took Ali ben Ahmed 
 aside, and informed him, that a wound fever had set in 
 as he—the doctor—had anticipated, that at present the 
 condition of the sufferer was not without danger, the 
 extent of which could be ascertained only by observing 
 the progress of the fever. He then repeated his ad¬ 
 monition, that undisturbed repose of mind as well as of 
 
200 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 body was absolutely necessary, adding that if this advice 
 were not followed recovery might be despaired of. 
 
 Thus warned Ali ben Ahmed, like an obedient nurse, 
 sat silently by the couch of the cavalier day after day, 
 and during the greater part of each night. If the sick 
 man addressed to him a question, it was met by a pres¬ 
 sure of the hand, and by a sign not to speak till the 
 doctor should permit. 
 
 Don Enrique had been ill about a week, during 
 which the Oumena watched almost constantly by the 
 couch, when he one night sought his pillow a little earlier 
 than usual, hoping to obtain the repose which he so 
 much needed; but, finding he could not sleep, he fell 
 into a train of reflections. ‘ How strange is destiny! ’ 
 thought Ben Ahmed. ‘ I who have so long hated the 
 Roumis, and have fought against these invaders of my 
 country, now owe my life to one of our foes, when my 
 own countryman, my friend and my companion in arms, 
 leaves me to be devoured by the lion. Allah is great; 
 there is no deity but God ! extolled be His perfections ! 
 He knoweth all secret things. Verily no man can con¬ 
 tend against his fate.’ 
 
 From time to time he rose and went to look at his 
 sick guest, who continued to slumber on, in the same 
 state of feverish unconsciousness. At last, finding he 
 could obtain no rest himself, he left his bed to walk about 
 the room till dawn. 
 
 A subdued light was burning in the chamber. 
 
 After the watcher had taken several turns his eyes 
 chanced to fall upon the locket, which the poor cavalier 
 had worn round his neck, ‘ He seems to have kept it as 
 a talisman near his heart,’ thought Ben Ahmed, as he 
 
OURIDA. 
 
 201 
 
 mechanically took it up, and turned the medallion over 
 in his hand ; in doing this he accidentally touched a 
 spring, on which the clasp opened, and great was his 
 astonishment to see a miniature portrait of a beautiful 
 female face ; one which carried his thoughts back many 
 years, for it seemed to him the likeness of his long-lost 
 sister Zareefeh, as she looked when she so mysteriously 
 disappeared from her country. 
 
 The mind of Ben Ahmed was confounded at what he 
 saw. Before him was again the well-rerneM.c^ud ex¬ 
 pression of that charming countenance ; the same sweet 
 smile was on the lips, that feature so characteristic in the 
 Arab ; the dark hair and eyes, all were there, as if Time 
 had recalled the past; the past, when Ali often left 
 home to fight for the independence of his country ; the 
 past, when their masters were of their own religion ; the 
 past, when Sabeehad his young wife was not yet the 
 mother of the child whose birth had cost the life of her 
 father’s faithful companion. During this long interval 
 Ourida had been born, and this lovely daughter had 
 since grown to womanhood. Above all Ben Ali dwelt 
 on the earlier period, when he had failed to find his 
 sister on returning from one of his military expeditions. 
 
 ‘ How many other changes had taken place since 
 those troubled days ! What hopes and aspirations had 
 been disappointed ! The enemy against whom he then 
 combated was now master in the land for which they 
 had fought.’ Again his thoughts reverted to the strange 
 fatality which had linked his fate with one of that very 
 race ; for ‘ did he not owe his life to the Roumi 
 cavalier ? and what could mean this portrait which he 
 had worn near his heart—the likeness of Zareefeh ? ’ 
 
2.02 
 
 ALGERIA AS II IS. 
 
 Greatly perplexed at all this, his first impulse was 
 to return the miniature to Don Enrique and ask him to 
 explain the mystery ; but he rejected the idea as quickly 
 as he had conceived it, when he remembered the state of 
 his unfortunate guest, and the injunctions of the doctor, 
 that, above all, he must not be excited in any way. 
 Thus was Ben Ahmed condemned to lose himself in 
 conjectures, and to suffer the torture of impatient 
 waiting. ‘ It seems my fate,’ mused Ahmed, ‘ to be 
 drawn towards these Roumis, and even to love one of 
 that once detested rage. This painting is also the work 
 of a Christian, for no other artist of the forbidden craft 
 could so well represent on the elephant’s tusk the 
 beautiful face of Zareefeh.’ 
 
 During the time the events narrated took place, the 
 secluded life of Ourida remained undisturbed by other 
 excitement than that of her own thoughts, which no 
 longer flowed in the tranquil course they had hitherto 
 taken. She had heard of the lion-hunt from her hand¬ 
 maid Alawee, and that some catastrophe had happened 
 to one of the party, but little imagined who the sufferer 
 was; and still less did she suspect that it was her lover, 
 who was hovering between life and death under the 
 same roof with herself. She had not seen her father 
 very often of late ; and, with the reserve always main¬ 
 tained by Arabs towards her sex, he had told her nothin^ 
 of what had taken place. It was a relief however to 
 Ourida that no mention had been made lately of 
 Hassan ; Ali ben Ahmed had not once pronounced his 
 name, nor had he made any allusion to her marriage. 
 This reprieve she attributed to the accident which had 
 resulted from the encounter with the lion, for it had 
 
OURIDA. 
 
 203 
 
 brought a wounded stranger into the house, about whose 
 recovery the old chief appeared unusually solicitous. 
 
 Regarding this foreign guest she had been able to 
 learn very little ; as even Alawee had not seen him, a 
 male attendant having been chosen to relieve Ali ben 
 Ahmed in watching at the bedside of the invalid. 
 
 But if the silence regarding Hassan brought some 
 consolation to Ourida, receiving no tidings of Don 
 Enrique distressed her greatly. Unable to account for 
 this apparent indifference, her fancy suggested evils 
 which rendered her unhappy state of mind yet more 
 wretched. 
 
 On the morning after the incident of the locket the 
 doctor remarked an abatement of the fever, and the day 
 following he pronounced his patient out of danger ; but 
 the physician recommended great caution, and repeated 
 his injunctions in regard to repose, mental as well as 
 physical, observing that the least excitement might be 
 followed by a relapse, in which case fatal consequences 
 would probably be the result. 
 
 Ali ben Ahmed, thus constrained to comply with the 
 exigencies of the medical attendant, continued to watch 
 the progress of his deliverer towards convalescence with 
 as much assiduity as before ; although it obliged him to 
 wait for a solution of the mystery attached to the locket 
 till the cavalier should be able to explain it. 
 
 Of Hassan ben Abed neither he nor his friends had 
 heard anything since the eventful night of the fight with 
 the lion. It was known only that he had left that part 
 of the country. Some thought he had gone on a pil¬ 
 grimage to Mecca, others believed him to have passed 
 into Marocco, or to have retired to one of his estates in a 
 
204 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 distant part of Algeria. All agreed that his absence was 
 a proof of conscious guilt, and that Ali ben Ahmed 
 might consider himself released from any promise he had 
 made to a man whose treachery was evident, and whose 
 character and age made him unsuited for the husband of 
 a girl so young and so estimable as his daughter. 
 
 Ben Ahmed listened in silence to the comments of 
 his friends, making no reply to what they said on the 
 subject, for he liked it not. His impressions of the 
 event remained the secret of his own bosom. 
 
 As soon as the condition of Don Enrique had taken 
 a favourable turn youth and a good constitution achieved 
 the rest, so that he made rapid progress towards complete 
 recovery. 
 
 He had left his bed some days, and had even been 
 allowed occasionally to walk a little in the garden, when 
 Ali ben Ahmed thought the time was come to question 
 his guest about the medallion portrait. 
 
 One day, when the Oumena was on the point of 
 speaking to him about it, Don Enrique himself asked for 
 the locket, which Ben Ahmed had no sooner given to 
 him, than the young man, opening it, gazed affectionately 
 on the beautiful face and, kissing the little picture, ex¬ 
 claimed : ‘ O my mother! thou knowest not of the danger 
 in which the life of thy son has been placed, little do’st 
 thou imagine that we might never have met again.’ 
 
 When Ben Ahmed heard this apostrophe of the 
 cavalier the light became dark before him. ‘ After all, ’ 
 thought the old soldier, ‘it is not my sister, but some 
 chance resemblance which, exaggerated by my own 
 imagination, has deceived me.’ 
 
OUR ID A. 
 
 205 
 
 His attachment and gratitude to his young friend 
 were however not lessened by this disappointment; and, 
 desiring to learn to whom he owed his life, he begged 
 
 Don Enrique to tell him something of his personal 
 history. 
 
206 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 OURIDA. 
 
 To live in hearts we leave behind, 
 Is not to die.—C ampbell. 
 
 ‘Mine/ replied the cavalier, ‘is a very simple and imper¬ 
 fect story. My father, Don Alvarez de Gonzales, who 
 belonged to one of the distinguished families of Spain, 
 lost his life in a fall from his horse before I had attained 
 half my present age. I remember him as a fine-looking, 
 handsome man, but still better by his love for my mother 
 and myself, for this made and left the impression by 
 which I recall him to mind now, as at every other mo¬ 
 ment of my life. I have heard my mother—whom 
 Providence has spared to me—say that, before he met 
 with her, the great pleasure, or rather passion, of his life 
 had been to travel into foreign countries, but from that 
 happy day his love of change and adventure ceased, and 
 my father—like the volatile bird which has found the 
 mate it loves—concentrated his affections on his wife 
 and home. It was during one of his journeys in the 
 country where we now are that he first saw my mother. 
 She is of the noble house of Aissa. 
 
 ‘Hold, young man,’ exclaimed Ben Ahmed, inter- 
 
OURIDA. 
 
 207 
 
 rupting him, ‘Ai'ssa, didst thou say? This is the name 
 of my family. There is no strength nor power but in 
 God, the High, the Great! O my desire, my hope ! 
 Suspense is torture ; proceed, I conjure thee.’ 
 
 ‘ As I have said,’ continued Don Enrique, greatly 
 excited by the remark with which Ben Ahmed had 
 broken into his narrative, ‘ my mother is a native of this 
 land, and is even from this part of Algeria. Her brother 
 was a chief of an Arab tribe, the name of which I have 
 heard her mention, and it is that we both have just 
 pronounced.’ 
 
 ‘ Son of m y sister,’ exclaimed the old soldier, ‘ come 
 to my bosom ! ’ Overpowered by feelings which the unex¬ 
 pected disclosure of a happy circumstance calls forth, 
 
 they remained for some moments clasped in each other’s 
 arms. 
 
 Don Enrique was not less astonished and delighted 
 to learn that the man whose life he had saved* was 
 his mother s brother, than was the veteran to find that 
 it was to his sister’s son he owed his deliverance. The 
 cavalier had known Ben Ai'ssa only under the name 
 of Ali ben Ahmed, a name he did not remember to have 
 heard from his mother on the rare occasions when she 
 had spoken of her nearest relation, whom she had then 
 called Ai'ssa. Ben Ahmed he knew to be the father of 
 Ourida; for, soon after he met that lovely damsel, he 
 wished to have her father pointed out to him, and this 
 desire had been gratified, but a personal presentation to 
 the chief had first taken place at the lion-hunt, where 
 Don Enrique so greatly distinguished himself. 
 
 The chivalrous character of the Spaniard would have 
 made him fly to the rescue of anyone in danger, but to 
 
208 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 save Ourida’s father willingly did he risk his life. It 
 would be impossible to describe the sensations of the 
 cavalier when he thus discovered that, besides his othei 
 claims to favour in the eyes of Ben Ahmed, he was his 
 
 own nephew and Ourida s cousin. 
 
 Absorbed in this delightful reflection he had for¬ 
 gotten to continue his narrative , and, as the disclosure 
 of their relationship had plunged Ali ben Ahmed into a 
 like pleasing revery, he had not immediately noticed 
 the interruption; but he now desired Don Enrique to 
 proceed. 
 
 < The story of my mother’s life at this period,’ con¬ 
 tinued the cavalier, ‘ is but imperfectly known to me. I 
 have heard her say that she became acquainted with my 
 father when the struggle for independence was at its 
 height; thou, her brother, wert then fighting in another 
 province, or wert a prisoner of war as some had re¬ 
 ported. 
 
 < Long did thy sister wait thy return, for she wished 
 to have thy consent to her marriage. The insecurity of 
 those troubled times, at last, induced her to place herself 
 under the protection of the man she loved, and they 
 were united—as others have since been—by a civil 
 marriage according to the laws of this colony ; and 
 never had she cause to repent of her choice. 
 
 < Xt was not necessary for her to abjure her own faith, 
 nor did she do so. My father was a Christian of en¬ 
 lightened mind and liberal principles, who looked more 
 to the moral maxims of religion than to any particular 
 form of belief. For him it was enough that he and his 
 wife adored the same God, and that Christ, our Saviour, 
 was venerated by both.’ 
 
OURIDA. 
 
 209 
 
 ‘ After my parents had arrived in Spain letters were 
 written to thee, her brother; but, as no answer was ever 
 received, it was supposed that thou hadst either fallen 
 in battle or hadst died in captivity. 
 
 ‘ As to my personal history,’ added the cavalier 
 modestly, ‘ it is not worth relating. Unlike thy active 
 military career, my valiant uncle, it has been adorned 
 by no stirring exploits in the field, nor by any adventure 
 except one, which could leave a lasting impression on 
 the mind.’ 
 
 ‘ But that one,’ interposed Ben Ahmed, ‘ would form 
 an epoch in the life of any man. Many there are who 
 face the monarch of the forest, but few ’- 
 
 ‘ Oh,’ said Don Enrique, interrupting him, ‘ I did not 
 allude to the fight with the lion, but to an encounter far 
 more dangerous to me.’ 
 
 The old soldier, who considered the said a very res¬ 
 pectable antagonist, looked at his nephew in astonish¬ 
 ment. * And what,’ asked Ben Ahmed, ‘ could’st thou 
 meet more formidable than the king of animals ? ’ 
 
 The cavalier felt that a critical moment of his life 
 was at hand. When he called to mind the prejudices of 
 the Muslims against the Christians he was almost afraid 
 to proceed; but, sustained by the hopes with which so 
 many favourable circumstances inspired him, he resolved 
 to open his heart to Ourida’s father, and trust to his star 
 for the result. As well may I know my fate now, he 
 thought, as live on in the torture of suspense and fear. 
 
 Therefore summoning up his resolution, he thus ad¬ 
 dressed Ali ben Ahmed :—‘ Some weeks before the 
 eventful day of the lion-hunt, riding in the neighbour¬ 
 hood of this mansion, I passed through the wood near 
 
 P 
 
210 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 it. On emerging from the forest I observed two females, 
 evidently a lady and her servant, about to enter the gate 
 of a garden. Being close to it, the former, supposing 
 herself to be unobserved, took off her adjar, when I was 
 for an instant—for a single moment—permitted, by my 
 good or evil fortune, to see a face which has never since 
 been absent from my mind ; except when sickness made 
 me unconscious of everything in the world.’ 
 
 Ben Ahmed, whose brow had darkened as he 
 listened to the latter part of the cavalier’s narrative, was 
 about to make some observation in reply, when Don 
 Enrique added : ‘ Think not, noble Ahmed, that, because 
 I obeyed the call of duty—the instinct of the huntsman 
 —in flying to assist a comrade in a danger which might 
 have been my own ; or because thou mad’st a hasty 
 promise, when thou could’st not know how precious 
 might be the boon asked of thy generosity, I would for 
 this presume to hope that thy sister’s son may become 
 also thy son, and the houses of Ai'ssa and Gonzales be 
 thus doubly united.’ 
 
 ‘ Young man,’ answered Ben Ahmed, calmly and 
 almost coldly, ‘ discoveries and surprises have followed 
 each other so rapidly since thou hast begun thy story, 
 that had the unexpected conclusion been suppressed, I 
 should yet have required time and repose to recover 
 from the excitement it has occasioned. Remember that 
 there exists an obstacle to thy union with the daughter 
 of a Muslim ; it is that which my sister overlooked when 
 she married thy father. For the present let us say no 
 more on the subject. Leave me now, my son, to my 
 own meditations; and may Allah—whose name be 
 exalted—guide me in the struggle between inclination 
 
OUR ID A. 
 
 211 
 
 and duty; and, if they cannot be reconciled, may He 
 teach me to submit to His decrees.’ 
 
 When Ali ben Ahmed was left alone it was the hour 
 of evening prayer, and sincerely did the old Mussulman 
 supplicate Allah, the High, the Great, for a happy in¬ 
 spiration in his embarrassment. 
 
 Some days passed, during which Ali ben Ahmed had 
 reflected about the answer he should give to Don Enrique, 
 without being able to decide how to act ; but as he turned 
 over in his mind all the strange events that had taken 
 place, he felt a vehement desire again to see his long- 
 lost sister. 
 
 In order to accomplish this wish it would be necessary 
 for Don Enrique to cross over to Spain ; and, after hav¬ 
 ing related to his mother all that had happened, to return 
 with her to Algeria. ‘Nothing,’ thought Ben Ahmed, 
 ‘ could so much contribute to the entire recovery of my 
 young friend as such a change of air and scene.’ 
 
 Thus resolved, he repaired to the apartment of the 
 cavalier, and told him what he wished him to do. Don 
 Enrique, who fancied that he perceived something in the 
 proposal of his uncle not unfavourable to the aspirations 
 of his own heart, and who foresaw that his mother might 
 prove a powerful intercessor for him with her brother, 
 gladly undertook the journey ; and, after taking affec¬ 
 tionate leave of his hospitable host, he set out the next 
 morning, regretting only that he could not see Ourida 
 before his departure. 
 
 After his nephew had left, Ali ben Ahmed debated, 
 day and night, in his own mind the question of marrying 
 his daughter to the son of his sister. ‘ As to Hassan,’ 
 swore the old soldier to himself, ‘ by the head of the 
 
212 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 Prophet, a traitor—may God blacken his face 21 —shall not 
 wed my Ourida. But shall I then give her to a son of 
 Spain—an unbeliever ?—to one of a people preeminently 
 hostile to us, our oldest foes amongst the Roumi 
 nations ? ’ 
 
 Then his thoughts would take a more favourable 
 turn, when he remembered how the cavalier had saved 
 his life almost at the expense of his own ; that the hand 
 of destiny seemed perceptible in what had come to pass ; 
 besides all this 'Was it not Ourida’s own cousin who 
 asked her hand ? Was he not half an Arab ? Did he 
 not possess excellent personal qualities ? and did not 
 the Christians treat their wives better than the Muslims ? 
 W r ould not his beloved child have a better chance of being 
 happy ? ’ 
 
 Often did Ali ben Ahmed fall into such a train of 
 reasoning, often was that strong barrier—a difference in 
 religion—assailed by every argument the veteran could 
 bring to bear on the point 
 
 Such conclusions for and against the consummation 
 of his wishes—often adopted and again rejected—left 
 the mind of Ali ben Ahmed undecided ; till one day, 
 after long deliberation, he remembered the remark of 
 Don Enrique, that some Muslim women had married 
 Christians 22 —and this he knew to be true although of 
 rare occurrence ; but in spite of such precedents in favour 
 of what he desired, he might still have remained as waver¬ 
 ing as before had not a sudden thought come, like a 
 gleam of sunshine, to cast a light over the dark labyrinth 
 of his investigations. 
 
 ‘ Have I lost faith in the future of my country ? ’ 
 suddenly exclaimed Ben Ali, as the idea struck him. ' 
 
OURIDA. 
 
 213 
 
 * Do I no longer trust in the star of its destiny, or believe 
 in the prediction of what is to come ? Shall not the 
 stranger be driven from the soil and this land be restored 
 to the true believers ? and when we are again our own 
 masters, must not all who tread this ground follow the 
 precepts of the Prophet ?—may God favour and preserve 
 him ! So it was in other days, and so it will be again, 
 when the holy Crescent once more shines over us as the 
 emblem of our faith. Zareefeh’s son, if he marries Ourida, 
 must live in Algeria, and when the day of our deliverance 
 arrives he, like the other Roumis, will be obliged to abjure 
 his false creed and embrace the true religion.’ 
 
 4 All this,’ thought the old Mahometan, ‘ is merely a 
 matter of time, and the day is not far distant when it 
 will be accomplished.’ 
 
 Having thus settled the future of his country, much 
 to his own satisfaction, and built a castle for the airy 
 creations of his imagination, he gave up thinking on the 
 matter, glad to have come to a resolution. The last 
 consideration in particular—that which had put an end to 
 his doubts—delighted him much, for it showed him in 
 perspective Don Enrique—the man he preferred to all 
 others for his daughter’s husband—converted to Isla- 
 mism, dressed in Arab costume, with his head 
 shaved—save the regulation mahomet 23 on the crown, 
 without which an orthodox Muslim might be left below 
 when the rest are pulled up into paradise! 
 
214 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 OURIDA {concluded). 
 
 No hay mal que por bien no venga .—Spanish adage. 
 
 Be still, sad heart ! and cease repining ; 
 
 Behind the cloud the sun is shining.— Longfellow. 
 
 The life of Ben Ahmed now entered on a new phase, no 
 longer tormented by doubt and uncertainty, for he had, 
 in his own mind, consented to the marriage of his 
 daughter with the cavalier; whose absence was not 
 inopportune, for it left the Oumena to mature his plans 
 without being embarrassed by a lover’s importunity. 
 
 At one time he indulged in pleasant speculations, 
 whilst at another he thought over the surprising events 
 which had lately taken place. As Don Enrique, whilst 
 avowing his love for Ourida, had been careful to say 
 nothing of his interviews with the lady, well knowing that 
 this would be an unpardonable offence with an Arab 
 father, Ali ben Ahmed could not account for the progress 
 the reciprocal attachment had made in the breasts of the 
 young couple. Comparing the time from which he had 
 observed the change in his daughter with the period 
 when the cavalier had first seen Ourida, he was con¬ 
 vinced that she had loved her cousin from the day of 
 
OUR ID A. 
 
 2 i 5 
 
 which he had spoken ; and that the objection she had to 
 marry Hassan was not occasioned solely by her aversion 
 to him, but because she loved Don Enrique. 
 
 The old chief, well pleased with the arrangement of 
 his plans for the future, was in excellent humour with 
 himself. He reflected that, if he kept his consent to the 
 marriage a secret from Ourida and Enrique, their being 
 unprepared for it would add to the pleasure of the 
 surprise. ‘ They shall be punished,’ chuckled Ben 
 Ahmed—anticipating the effect of his practical joke— 
 for falling in love without my permission ! Ourida will 
 remain under the impression that Hassan is to be her 
 husband, and Enrique—for whose presence on the oc¬ 
 casion I can find some pretext—will believe the same.’ 
 
 Thinking of Ourida made Ben Ai'ssa wish to see his 
 beloved child, whom he had somewhat neglected during 
 the illness of the cavalier ; he therefore repaired to her 
 apartment. 
 
 She was in the same dejected state in which she had 
 been for some time. Her health had declined and a 
 settled melancholy made her indifferent to everything. 
 Her father found her looking so pale and ill, that he at 
 first felt disposed to abandon his intention of keeping 
 her in ignorance of the unexpected felicity he had pre¬ 
 pared for the lovers ; scarcely could he forbear to cheer 
 her with the good tidings, for he knew that they would 
 at once restore the afflicted girl and bring back more 
 than the happiness she had lost, yet, unwilling to resign 
 his pleasant anticipations of her astonishment and 
 delight, when she should unexpectedly find the cause of 
 her sadness removed, and in its place see the sunny path 
 of a bright future open before her,—he held to his 
 
2 l6 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS, 
 
 original design. Remembering at the same time that 
 the cavalier would be back in a few days, after which it 
 would not be necessary to defer the wedding, he bade 
 her prepare for it. 
 
 Ourida, who knew nothing of Hassan’s conduct and 
 disgrace, believed him to be her destined husband ; and, 
 not knowing what had become of Don Enrique, despair 
 had made life of little value to her ; so she only replied, 
 ‘ I hear and obey.’ 
 
 But, when she found herself alone with her faithful 
 attendant, she gave vent to her feelings in lamentations 
 and tears. Alawee sought to encourage her mistress 
 with every consolation her attachment and duty sug¬ 
 gested. She also admonished Ourida that 4 all must 
 submit to the will of Allah—whose name be exalted. 
 Marriages,’ continued Alawee, ‘are events of doubtful 
 issue ; they are,’ she added—illustrating her observation 
 by a Spanish adage—‘ like melons we buy at the market; 
 all appear alike, till we discover what is hidden by the 
 outside with its green colour of hope! In this uncer¬ 
 tainty do all Arab maids wed, and few, before they 
 marry, see the man of their father’s choice.’ 
 
 ‘ True,’answered Ourida, ‘but neither do they see 
 the man they could love ; thus is my misfortune greater 
 than that of most daughters of Ismael.’ In this manner 
 did she deplore her hard fate. 
 
 Shortly after Ali ben Amed’s last visit to' Ourida, 
 the cavalier and his mother arrived from Spain. We 
 shall not attempt to describe the meeting of the long- 
 separated brother and sister. Although Ben Ai'ssa ex¬ 
 pected to see Zareefeh metamorphosed after the Roumi 
 fashion, he was not prepared for the extraordinary 
 
OURIDA. 
 
 217 
 
 change effected by her European dress, and greatly was 
 he shocked when he saw his sister’s face exposed to eyes 
 profane. But he made her very happy when he told her 
 —under promise of secresy—that he consented to the 
 marriage of the cousins. 
 
 Out of deference to the prejudices of the Muslims 
 in general, and in order to avoid the comments of their 
 own friends, it was agreed that after the wedding the 
 bride, her husband, and Zareefeh should return to Spain 
 and reside there for the present. 
 
 After Ali ben Ahmed had for a few days enjoyed 
 the society of his sister, the veteran called on the mayor 
 of the nearest town, and it was arranged that the marriage 
 should be performed at the castle of Ali ben Amed ben 
 Ai'ssa on the following day. 
 
 On his return from the Mairie he simply told Don 
 Enrique that he should require him on the morrow to 
 witness the transfer of some family property; to which 
 the cavalier willingly consented. 
 
 In honour of the festive event which was to unite the 
 noble houses of Ai’ssa and Gonzales, the great reception 
 hall of the fine old Moorish building was decorated in the 
 taste of the country. Around were hung the insignia of 
 war and trophies of the chase. Amongst the victims of 
 the mekahla and the yatagan a large lion—which in 
 death still preserved something of the terrible aspect of 
 life—occupied a conspicuous place, from whence, when 
 the company should be assembled, it would again con¬ 
 front the party against which it had contended when 
 alive ! A rightful privilege, for it had brought about 
 the ceremony over which it would appear to preside. 
 
2l8 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 This was the lion Don Enrique had killed when he had 
 saved the life of Ourida’s father. 
 
 The day fixed by Ali ben Ahmed for the wedding 
 being arrived, shortly before the party assembled he 
 ordered his daughter to array herself in a dress becom¬ 
 ing an Eastern bride. 
 
 With the aid of Alawee she completed her toilet, 
 leaving her face uncovered ; an innovation submitted to 
 by her father on the occasion as a concession to Christian 
 customs, but about which the distracted girl cared too 
 little to be surprised. 
 
 Amongst those who were invited to the fete were 
 the men who had been present at the encounter with the 
 said. 
 
 The sun-burnt Arabs, dressed in the national cos¬ 
 tume, many of them old soldiers, companions in arms of 
 their host, formed picturesque groups, which harmonised 
 so well with the surrounding proofs of their intrepidity, 
 that the presence of the huntsmen seemed to impart 
 vitality to the savage animals which looked on them. 
 
 The mayor, the witnesses, Don Enrique, and his 
 mother were there. 
 
 When the drapery which hung over the entrance to 
 the apartment where the guests were assembled was 
 drawn aside, Ourida, accompanied by her faithful at¬ 
 tendant, was seen on the threshold, trembling, and with 
 downcast eyes, for to her it was the threshold of a new 
 existence. She remained a moment motionless, as if 
 afraid to advance ; fearing to see before her the dreaded 
 Hassan ben Abed. 
 
 The sudden apparition of the beautiful girl—as she 
 
OUR IDA. 
 
 219. 
 
 stood framed by the doorway—formed a picture which 
 excited the wonder and admiration of all who saw it. 
 
 From the high ogive window opposite the maiden 
 was lighted by the rays of the sun, which shone down 
 on her now, as it had brightened fifteen summers of her 
 life. 
 
 If the appearance of the charming damsel had pro¬ 
 duced a sensation in all, there was one in particular 
 whom the sight of Ourida—attired in the bridal dress—- 
 the presence of the mayor, witnesses, and the assembled 
 party, caused to dread an approaching calamity. 
 
 Don Enrique had turned deadly pale from the instant 
 his eye had rested on Ben Ahmed’s daughter : an agon¬ 
 ising suspicion had crossed his mind, and he trembled 
 like the poor girl herself. His eager glance wandered 
 uneasily over the company in search of Hassan ; for 
 although he knew him not by sight, he feared to recog¬ 
 nise his rival by his happy look. Of his treachery at 
 the lion-hunt—like Ourida—he knew nothing, having 
 been carried home insensible, and since his illness he 
 had been absent in Spain. 
 
 The distress of the lovers was too much for Ali ben 
 Ahmed, who loved them with tender affection. 
 
 Overcome by the painful result of the too successful 
 stratagem, he seized the hand of Enrique, and led him 
 hurriedly forward to Ourida, who—having just seen her 
 lover there, as if to witness her marriage with another— 
 had sunk fainting to the ground as her father caught her 
 in his arms. 
 
 ‘ My child, my Ourida! ’ exclaimed the old chief, 
 pressing her to his bosom : ‘ thy father has been cruel,, 
 the deception was a selfish artifice, but thy suffering is 
 
220 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 over now. Thy hand, like thy heart, is for him thou 
 lovest, for the noble Enrique de Gonzales, who saved 
 thy father’s life. Be happy, O my children, my blessing- 
 on you both ! ’ 
 
 Who can tell, what pen shall depict, the rapture, the 
 astonishment of Ourida when, instead of the dreaded 
 Hassan’s, her father placed her little hand in that of the 
 beloved of her soul! Her reason almost fled in the 
 excess of her joy; whilst Enrique seemed like one who 
 —stunned by a sudden blow—had been brought back to 
 life and happiness. 
 
 All who witnessed the tender scene were affected to 
 tears ; even the calm dignity of the Arab chiefs gave 
 way, and the pleasure felt by Alawee was only surpassed 
 by that of the delighted couple. 
 
 The ceremony was then proceeded with, and the 
 beautiful Arab maid became the wife of her Christian 
 lover. 
 
 When the marriage had taken place Ali ben Ahmed 
 — like a true believer in fate and destiny—consoled him¬ 
 self with the reflection that ‘ all would be well in the 
 end, if such be the will of Allah—whose name be ex¬ 
 alted.’ 
 
 United to the man she loved, Ourida, with her hus¬ 
 band, her faithful Alawee, and Ali ben Ahmed’s sister, 
 left for the neighbouring shores of Spain. 
 
 Ali ben Ai'ssa intends to invite them to return, when 
 the Crescent shall again shed its light over the land as 
 the symbol of its religion, and Algeria shall no longer 
 be the home of the stranger. 
 
221 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 SECOND EXCURSION.—PALESTRO.—THE INSURRECTION. 
 
 Era la notte, e non prendean ristoro 
 Col sonno ancor le faticose genti; 
 
 Ma qui vegghiando nel fabril lavoro 
 
 Stavano i Franchi alia custodia intenti.— Tasso. 
 
 BEFORE starting from Algiers on our second excursion— 
 in which, after visiting Palestro, we shall return to the 
 sea, embark at Dellys, and sail along the coast to Bone, 
 where we leave the littoral and proceed inland to Con¬ 
 stantine and the Sahara—we may mention that a great 
 part of the land route, that from Setif to Constantine, is 
 very monotonous, whilst that between Setif and Palestro 
 is defective and inconvenient, although the road is in¬ 
 teresting in the highest degree, for it passes through one 
 of the most beautiful districts of the Grande Kabylie— 
 the bold and romantic defile known as the ‘ Iron Gate.’ 
 
 Pending the completion of the railway, which is in 
 course of construction from Algiers to Constantine, we 
 prefer the coasting voyage. 
 
 The village of Palestro alluded to above, which is on 
 the road from Algiers to Setif, has become painfully 
 famous as having been the theatre of the worst atrocities 
 
222 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS 
 
 which were committed during the insurrection in 1871 ; 
 and, as these sad events form a dramatic episode in the 
 history of the colony, some account of them will not be 
 out of place in a work on Algeria. We shall there 
 fore relate what occurred when we arrive at that small 
 borough. 
 
 The country between Algiers and Palestro is not in¬ 
 teresting. I11 less than two hours after leaving the 
 capital we arrived at the Maison Carree. When the 
 Turks were in power this fort, occupied by the Janizaries, 
 was formidable to such Arab tribes as were disposed to 
 revolt or were in arrears in payment of taxes, and to all 
 who gave offence to their Ottoman masters. It is now 
 used as a prison. 
 
 After quitting the Maison Carree, and crossing the 
 plain of the Metidja, we came to the town of Alma, and 
 soon after to the Col of the Beni Aicha, both of which, 
 like Palestro, were the scenes of the insurrection. We 
 shall speak of them when we narrate what happened in 
 that ill-starred community, which is a few miles from 
 the Beni Ai'cha, a hamlet consisting of only a few houses. 
 
 Palestro is a solitary village situated amongst the 
 mountains, out of reach of immediate succour in case of 
 attack, as was made but too evident during the revolt 
 of the natives three years ago ; which we shall now 
 describe. 
 
 Poets and sentimental writers have indulged in much 
 eulogy on Arab hospitality, and an Arab’s respect for his 
 word of honour. The following narrative of what took 
 place during the late rebellion will not be found to 
 sustain their reputation for these virtues, for more re¬ 
 volting treachery and barbarity than is revealed in the 
 
PALESTRO. — THE INSURRECTION. 
 
 223 
 
 drama of which Palestro and Alma were the scenes, can 
 scarcely be found in the history of any people. 
 
 The insurrection of 1871 began in the province of 
 Constantine, and spread during the months of April and 
 May to the canton of Alma, as was the intention of the 
 chiefs who planned and directed the movement. It was 
 decided that, whilst the Caid Ali laid siege to Tizi-Ouzou 
 and Mahieddine, Alma should be attacked, and that the 
 isolated village of Palestro, removed from any assistance, 
 should be carried by storm and destroyed. 
 
 This project, as far as it related to Palestro, was only 
 too successful \ but it was destined to fail before the re¬ 
 sistance it met with at Alma. The revolt was, however, 
 not entirely put down before it had served as a pretext 
 for many evil deeds, and had caused much bloodshed in 
 the invaded provinces. 
 
 The native inhabitants of the canton of Alma, both 
 Kabyles and Arabs, joined the insurgents. Hatred to 
 the French had been excited to the highest pitch by the 
 exhortations and preachings of the Marabouts, so that 
 the rising, which under Mokrani had only a military 
 character, now that it was fomented by the Cheik el 
 Haddad—high priest of the religious order of Sidi- 
 Abderrhaman—assumed a form of fanaticism which was 
 sure to be followed by abominable crimes. 
 
 Everything indicated the approaching rebellion, and 
 foretold the consequences which would result from it. 
 The natives became insolent and menacing, using lan¬ 
 guage the real signification of which it was impossible to 
 doubt, yet many Europeans refused to believe in the 
 threatened danger. This was especially the case at 
 Palestro, where the mayor, M. Bassetti, reposed entire 
 
224 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 confidence in the protestations of the Cai'd of the 
 Ammals, Hadj-Ahmed-ben-Dahman, and obstinately de¬ 
 clined to listen to the warnings of those who were not 
 so blind as himself; but he was soon to be the victim of 
 this misplaced confidence, for the same Cai'd was the first 
 to attack the village. 
 
 About the middle of April the principal chiefs held a 
 conference before Tizi-Ouzou. War being resolved on, 
 the part of each was assigned to him. It was agreed 
 that the command of the army which was to storm Alma 
 should be given to Omar ben Zamoun. This personage 
 —who was brother-in-law to Cai'd Ali—had been in¬ 
 vested with considerable authority by the French 
 Government; he was besides Amin of the powerful tribe 
 of the Flissas. At the service of this general Ali or 
 Kassi placed one of his own relations, Mohamed Said 
 Oulecl. 
 
 Besides the conference before mentioned, Omar ben 
 Zamoun held two great meetings ; one at his own house 
 at Azib Zamoun, and the other at the Timezerit. At a 
 later period, when called upon to answer for his conduct, 
 he pretended that, on these occasions, he was against the 
 insurrection ; but the fact that after the deliberations he 
 immediately assumed the supreme command is incon- 
 testible. Under pretext of protecting the Europeans 
 who were in the neighbourhood of his Azib he induced 
 thirty-two to shut themselves up in a caravansary, where 
 they were left almost without food, and subjected to 
 much ill-treatment, until they were given up to General 
 Ceres after the failure of the revolt. 
 
 Events now began to progress. On April 19th, the 
 tribes of the Flissas, Issers, Beni-Aicha, Beni-Amran, 
 
INSURRECTION OF 1871 . 
 
 225 
 
 and the Khachnas possessed themselves of the defile of 
 Beni-Ai'cha. The inhabitants and a brigade of gen¬ 
 darmes, having received timely warning, had just left 
 the village, which was plundered and burned. 
 
 The insurgents now divided themselves into two 
 bands ; one, composed of the Beni-Aicha and the 
 Beni-Amran, took the route to Palestro, distant about 
 twenty miles—the other, and stronger of the two, made 
 a descent upon Alma. After the anticipated fall of 
 Palestro these bands, whose advance was marked by 
 pillage and devastation, were to unite and continue their 
 operations together. The one which marched on 
 Palestro plundered and burnt all the houses they found 
 on their way. The other, after having set fire to Belle- 
 fontaine and sacked some farm-houses, proceeded to 
 attack Alma. Omar ben Zamoun, who had remained 
 with the last column, established his head-quarters at 
 Ain Tigjellabin, an admirably chosen position, which 
 commanded the sea-coast and the Algiers road to 
 Dellys. 
 
 Here we shall leave the Arab generalissimo ready 
 to assault Alma, whilst we follow the detachment march¬ 
 ing on Palestro, and relate what took place on its arrival 
 in that devoted village. 
 
 Few dramas are more affecting and more sanguinary 
 than that of which this small place was the theatre, dur¬ 
 ing the three dreadful days April 20, 21, and 22, 1871. 
 At a distance from any European settlement, isolated 
 and surrounded by mountains which command it on 
 every side, it adjoins two tribes ; one Kabyle, the Beni 
 Khalfoun, and the other Arab, the Ammals, both of 
 which had long been prepared to revolt. At several 
 
 Q 
 
226 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 meetings the massacre of the colonists had been resolved 
 on, neither did the native population dissemble the de¬ 
 signs which they cherished. 
 
 A remark made by the son of the Cafd of the Ammals 
 to his father, some days before the insurrection broke out, 
 will suffice to show what these projects were. They 
 happened to be both at the house of a man named Seguy, 
 whose daughter was at work with one of her companions 
 in the same room with the Arab chiefs. ‘ That girl/ said 
 Mohamed ben el Hadj to his father, ‘ must not be killed 
 when we begin the war, for I intend to marry her.’ The 
 yOung woman, who understood Arabic, was terrified at 
 this conversation, which she related to her parents ; but 
 they treated it as a joke. The girl herself was however 
 so impressed with the signification of what she had over¬ 
 heard that, when the situation became more threatening 
 some days later, she left for Algiers, refusing to remain 
 at Palestro. She was accompanied by a few others, who 
 thus escaped the fate of those who remained there. 
 
 It was agreed between the tribes which inhabited the 
 environs of Palestro and those who were to attack the 
 Col des Beni-A'fcha that the capture of this hamlet 
 should serve as a signal for the assault on the former. 
 
 On the 19th, it being known that the Col had been 
 burned, a meeting was held at Arbah, when the next 
 day was fixed for storming Palestro. I11 the meantime 
 nothing was omitted on the part of the Arabs which could 
 lull the people of the village into a belief in their own 
 security. The mayor was M. Bassetti, of whom we have 
 already spoken. There was at this time an officer of 
 artillery at Palestro—Captain Auger, who, in case of 
 attack would naturally be chosen to direct the defence. 
 
 9 
 
INSURRECTION OF 1871 . 
 
 227 
 
 Up to Wednesday the 19th, both the magistrate and the 
 officer believed the protestations of the Cai'ds and their 
 Amins. It was in vain that an honest inhabitant, Ham- 
 ida ben Salem, warned them of the imminent danger to 
 which they were exposed. Refusing to listen to him, 
 they placed confidence in the reports brought by Arabs 
 whom they had sent to reconnoitre. These men, on 
 their return, did not fail to say that they had observed 
 nothing unusiial. On this day however a system of 
 resistance was discussed, which was to be adopted if 
 necessary. 
 
 The morning of the 20th dispelled all doubts as 
 to the hostile intentions of the natives. Such of the 
 colonists as had to go into the country saw bands of 
 armed men crossing the river, haystacks and farm-houses 
 were on fire, whilst affrighted shepherds were hastening 
 back to town with their flocks. 
 
 The alarm-bell was rung and the drums beat to 
 quarters. The inhabitants were stationed in the three 
 buildings known to be best suited for their protection. 
 These were the priest’s house, the gendarmerie, and the 
 military barracks. They were separated from each 
 other, and formed a kind of triangle, so that a cross or 
 converging fire might cover the whole. Loopholes were 
 made in the walls, and a supply of provisions brought 
 in, as well as the most valuable property of the colonists. 
 Captain Auger and the cure Monginot took the command 
 of the presbytery; Mayor Bassetti and the brigadier of 
 the gendarmes directed the defence of the barracks, in 
 which were the men of his corps and some of the colonists. 
 The maison cantonnicre —which for want of a more ap¬ 
 propriate name we call a barrack—being covered by an 
 
228 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 arched terrace and having a court surrounded by a wall, 
 was considered the one best adapted for resistance. 
 Here therefore the women—fourteen in number—twelve 
 children, and some militia, were placed under the orders 
 of M. Ricard, a civil engineer. 
 
 Scarcely had these preparations been made when the 
 signal for attack was given, by hoisting a flag on the 
 Bordj of the Cai'd of the Animals. The dwellings which 
 had been abandoned were given up to- pillage, after 
 which the Arabs appeared to hesitate about the triangle, 
 but they vented their rage on some unfortunate Euro¬ 
 peans—who had not been able to enter Palestro in 
 time—killing them in sight of the village. 
 
 Hadj Ahmed ben Daham led the assault. Under 
 his orders were about 1,200 combatants. For the present 
 only a few shots were exchanged, but it was evident 
 that the Arabs were preparing for the morrow. In 
 the meantime they also made loopholes in the houses, 
 from which they could fire on those occupied by the 
 colonists. 
 
 On Friday the 22nd a discharge of musketry began 
 at break of day. The Beni Khalfoun had united with 
 the Animals, and all the tribes in the neighbourhood 
 had joined them. On an eminence, a little outside of 
 Palestro, the Amin el Oumena (Si Said ben Ali) was 
 seen mounted on a magnificent black horse ; in this con¬ 
 spicuous position he looked like a general commanding 
 his battalions, and the part he played in the drama was 
 made too evident to admit of denial afterwards. 
 
 The natives soon saw that the presbytery was the 
 weak point of the triangle; it was therefore against it 
 that their first efforts were directed. Encouraged by 
 
INSURRECTION OF 1871 . 
 
 229 
 
 their chiefs, the Arabs went with fury to the attack ; but 
 they were kept off by a well-directed fire. Even at this 
 moment the infatuated credulity of the Mayor Bassetti 
 continued to manifest itself; a victim to his own illusions, 
 he forbade his men to aim at the chiefs, and even went 
 so far as to reprimand a colonist who, in fighting his way 
 to gain the shelter of the presbytery, had been on the 
 point of killing Si Sai'd ben Ramdan, amin ferkat of the 
 Beni Khalfoun, one of the most inveterate of their 
 enemies. In this way the combat continued the whole 
 day, during which Captain Auger was wounded. As 
 night approached, the boldness of the assailants increased 
 with the obscurity, under favour of which they made 
 three successive assaults on the building, and at last 
 accomplished their purpose of bursting open the door. 
 From this moment the besieged found their position 
 untenable. Leaving by a back entrance, they forced a 
 passage at the point of the bayonet and, with a loss of 
 four men, succeeded in reaching the gendarmerie. After 
 murdering a woman who had remained in the house, it 
 was set on fire, the flames assisting the besieged in 
 watching the movements of their enemies during the 
 nieht. An incident occurred at the close of this sad day 
 which could not fail to discourage the defenders of 
 Palestro. Four men, including Ricard to whom the 
 command had been confided, abandoned the maison 
 cantonniere , and attempted to escape. Three succeeded 
 and one was killed. This deplorable desertion threw 
 the little garrison into a state of profound depression ; 
 without a leader, and not knowing how to conduct the 
 defence, they for a moment lost heart and energy. 
 
 At daybreak the assailants made propositions for sur- 
 
230 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 render. The terms offered in the name of the Ca'fd of 
 the Ammals were that the inhabitants of Palestro 
 should retain their arms, and that they should have safe 
 escort to Fondouck. Scarcely had these overtures been 
 submitted for deliberation than they were changed for 
 less favourable conditions, for the besieged were now re¬ 
 quired to disarm and to give up their money. 
 
 The Mayor and Captain Auger desiring to treat 
 directly with one of the chiefs, Si Sai'd ben Ramdan 
 came forward and guaranteed the treaty in the name of 
 the Amin el Oumena, pledging at the same time his own 
 honour that it should be faithfully executed. Captain 
 Auger made the retention of their weapons an absolute 
 condition. After a further conference with the grand 
 chief Si Said ben Ali, the Amin ferkat came back to say 
 that this was conceded; but the captain wishing to have 
 the word of Si Said ben Ali, that personage advanced 
 on horseback, and reiterated his assent to the stipulation 
 regarding the arms, adding that he would himself be 
 surety for the lives of the prisoners. 
 
 After this followed a short suspension of hostilities, 
 during which some of the men went from the gendar¬ 
 merie to the maison cantonniere to see their wives and 
 children. This happy inspiration saved the lives of 
 those who did so. 
 
 In defiance of the agreement, the Arabs almost im¬ 
 mediately ordered the Europeans to give up their guns 
 and swords. On their refusal, the Amin Si Sai’d ben 
 Ramdan, who had only just given his word that they 
 should keep them, obliged several of the colonists to 
 obey. ‘ Leave the rest for the present,’ said the Cai'd to 
 his followers, ‘ for, if you kill them all now, it will 
 prevent their comrades from quitting the gendarmerie.’ 
 
CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 INSURRECTION OF 1871 — concluded. 
 
 ©efafjrltd) ijt’g ten £eu gu roecfeiv 
 SSerterblid) iff teg Stgerg ? 
 
 3etod) tec fd)rec£ltd)fte ter ©d)recfen 
 
 Sag ift ter SXenfd) in [einem 2Baf)n.—S chiller. 
 
 The object of the Arabs in making the treacherous 
 proposal for a capitulation was now evident ; it had 
 been their intention to draw the garrison into a snare, 
 and they succeeded but too well. Notwithstanding the 
 perfidious policy of the chiefs in not wishing to have the 
 men who had accepted the convention killed imme¬ 
 diately, the Arabs persisted in demanding their arms ; 
 and on the refusal of one of them to comply, a volley 
 was fired at him and he fell pierced with balls. 
 
 This was the signal for a general massacre. It 
 would be impossible to describe the dreadful spectacle 
 which followed. The priest Monginot, who implored 
 mercy on his knees, was dispatched with knives and 
 yatagans, the rest were sacrificed in the same way to the 
 fury of these fanatics, the Amin el Oumena being present 
 whilst the victims of his abominable duplicity were 
 
232 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 slaughtered in cold blood. Two episodes of this dread¬ 
 ful drama may be mentioned as having had a less fatal 
 termination than the rest. When the Arabs were about 
 to kill Captain Auger, it occurred to the Caid el 
 Oumena that, if an officer in the French army were re¬ 
 tained as a hostage, his ransom would produce a con¬ 
 siderable sum of money. He therefore ordered his men 
 to take the captain prisoner. The other circumstance 
 alluded to is the following. Young Bassetti, a lad of 
 fourteen, son of the mayor, was also on the point of 
 being killed when, falling down before the Arab chief, he 
 supplicated him with outstretched arms to spare his life. 
 The great Caid made a sign to the assassins, who placed 
 the boy before him on his horse. It is worthy of notice 
 that this act of the Amin el Oumena was the only one 
 which showed any humanity on the part of a native 
 during that scene of horror. Other children had been 
 killed, and this youth seems to have owed his life to one 
 of those caprices which sometimes visit the hardest 
 heart; for only a moment after, the same Caid was deaf 
 to the entreaties of the lad pleading for the life of his 
 father, when the Amin replying coldly that he had done 
 enough already, left the place with his two captives. 
 
 These incidents show that a word or even a signi 
 from the Ca'id was sufficient to save the lives of those 
 whom he wished to rescue, a fact which makes him re¬ 
 sponsible for the bloodshed which followed. After he 
 had retired the massacre continued, and the most re¬ 
 volting atrocities were committed. The barrack was 
 next invaded. The colonists had set at liberty three 
 natives, who had been confined there ; but no sooner 
 had they done this than the Arabs supplied their 
 
INSURRECTION OF 1871 . 
 
 o'y 'J 
 
 countrymen with arms, and these men were now distin¬ 
 guished among the most ferocious of the combatants. 
 The brigadier of the gendarmes and another European 
 were killed by them. The Mayor Bassetti was first shot 
 and then finished by stabs with yatagans, one of the 
 wretches tearing open the yet palpitating body of the 
 too confiding magistrate. To relate all the details which 
 are known of this dreadful butchery would make the 
 narrative both too long and too repulsive. It will suf¬ 
 fice to say that, during this shocking carnage, forty-one 
 Europeans were murdered, and their bodies showed that 
 they had been afterwards treated with barbarous violence. 
 The Marabouts who fomented the insurrection, and the 
 chiefs who were present at Palestro, inciting and en¬ 
 couraging their men, are above all answerable for these 
 crimes ; for those in command could have put a stop to 
 the tragedy, instead of looking on, glad to see their 
 detestable passions so well served. 
 
 The work of extermination being completed at the 
 gendarmerie, the Arabs attacked the maison cantonnierc . 
 Owing to some inexplicable negligence, the door of 
 the court had been left badly closed, and through it the 
 assailants made their way, the Cai'd of the Ammals re¬ 
 proaching those who hesitated, till they had invaded the 
 yard, which was then pillaged of all it contained ; on 
 this the besieged retreated to the first floor, where they 
 made an heroic resistance. The Arabs, who now thought 
 of burning down the building, set the furniture on fire, 
 feeding it with dry wood and every combustible they 
 could lay their hands on. The flames soon reached the 
 floor above, on which the colonists were obliged to retreat 
 
234 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 to the terrace, having previously cut away the staircase 
 that led to it. 
 
 It was now noon. In a small space of thirteen 
 square yards forty-five persons were crowded together. 
 The wall or parapet of the flat roof was not one foot 
 and a half high, so that they were obliged to lie down 
 in order to escape the shots of their enemies. Four of 
 the men who stood up to fire over the wall were killed. 
 The Arabs, finding that their balls did not fall on the 
 terrace, threw stones and bricks, which fell on the de¬ 
 voted heads of the people, several of whom were severely 
 injured by these missiles. The situation of the Euro¬ 
 peans was dreadful. A burning sun darted its ardent 
 rays from above, whilst a hot sirocco added to the in¬ 
 tolerable heat. Under their feet, the house being on fire 
 made the scorching floor painful to tread on, and to in¬ 
 crease their sufferings they had not a drop of water to 
 quench their thirst. In this great distress one of their 
 number committed suicide; the women wept and 
 groaned aloud, entreating their husbands and friends to 
 put an end to their misery by surrendering; but this the 
 men refused to do, preferring, they said, rather to die in 
 the flames than to undergo the fate of their comrades of 
 the gendarmerie; they also hoped that succour might 
 come at the last moment. 
 
 The iron work of the terrace prevented the arched 
 roof from falling, but the fire below made it crack and 
 sink inwards, until smoke and flames were seen through 
 the crevices. The dresses of the besieged caught fire, 
 and at every moment it was necessary to take precau¬ 
 tions to prevent the powder from exploding. 
 
 At six o’clock in the evening, the arch being on the 
 
INSURRECTION OF 1871 . 
 
 23? 
 
 point of collapsing, it was no longer possible to prolong 
 this heroic struggle, and the defenders of the place at 
 last resolved to listen to what terms the Arabs would 
 offer, but they wished to treat with the chiefs. 
 
 < Hope for no relief,’ said the Caid of the Animals to 
 the brigadier: ‘Fort Napoleon, Dellys, Dra-el-Mizan, 
 the Col, Boudouan, are taken and destroyed. Surrender,, 
 and you shall have safe conduct to Algiers, where you 
 can embark for France.’ It is scarcely necessary to say 
 that all this was false. 
 
 The French wished to have the word of honour of 
 the Amin el Oumena, on which he came forward and 
 crave it to be understood that he adhered to the con- 
 
 o 
 
 ditions offered by the Caid of the Ammals. 
 
 After this the natives were allowed to ascend ; those 
 who went up stripped the colonists of all they possessed 
 even to their clothes. The prisoners were let down by 
 ladders ; and, as soon as they reached the ground, the 
 Arabs set up a cry of death to all, wishing to repeat the 
 former slaughter ; but this time the Caids interposed their 
 authority in favour of the captives. These thirty-nine 
 who survived the disaster of Palestro were at first taken 
 to the house of the Amin ferkat, and the day following 
 
 were sent to Si Said ben Ali. 
 
 The next day, the 23rd, the chiefs held a council of 
 war on the ruins of the village ; the natives assembled in 
 great numbers, twelve to fifteen tribes having latterly 
 taken part in the assault. Si Said ben Ali, who presided 
 at the meeting, informed the people that he had received 
 orders from Omar ben Zamoun for the troops to join his. 
 army in the attack on Alma, but a report that a French 
 column was advancing on Palestro broke up the con- 
 
2 36 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 ference. This column did not arrive before the following 
 morning, for Ricard, who, it will be remembered, had 
 made his escape on the evening of the 20th, reached 
 Algiers only on the 22nd, when he reported the critical 
 situation of the besieged. 
 
 Owing to the war with Germany Algeria had been 
 almost denuded of troops ; for, in a struggle in which the 
 French were as one to three—and in some of the battles 
 the disparity of numbers was still greater—it was neces¬ 
 sary, however impolitic as regarded this colony, to call 
 back every soldier who could be spared, to assist the 
 mother country in her hour of need. 
 
 In the emergency of which we are speaking the 
 military authorities had only a small force left in the 
 capital, but they got together a body of 600 men, the 
 command of which was confided to Colonel Fourchault, a 
 man of judgment and energy. On the 24th this detach¬ 
 ment, having overcome the difficulties of the march, 
 arrived at Palestro, where they found only the ruins of 
 the village and the dead bodies of its inhabitants. 
 Having seen the latter properly interred, the column 
 returned to Fondouck. The retreat was full of danger, 
 and it was only by hard fighting every step of the way 
 that the little band could reach that town. 
 
 The insurgents of Palestro, as had been previously 
 concerted, now joined those of Alma. 
 
 That we might relate events in the order in which 
 they took place, we left the commander-in-chief, Omar 
 ben Zamoun, about to attack Alma, which he did on the 
 22nd of April. A gallant defence enabled the village to 
 hold out till the fall of Palestro. Their position then 
 became more critical, for, besides the insurgents who had 
 
INSURRECTION OF 1871 . 
 
 237 
 
 accomplished the ruin of that unfortunate hamlet, the 
 Amin el Oumena called to his assistance Bach Agha 
 Mokrani, who, with many tribes which had placed them¬ 
 selves under his standard, hastened to join him. With 
 the combined forces, amounting to 12,000 or 15,000 men, 
 Omar ben Zamoun and Mokrani hoped to crush the 
 column of General Ceres, who now appeared in the field, 
 having come to the rescue of Alma, and to put down the 
 revolt. 
 
 The French and Arab armies met at Souflat, a place 
 about twenty-five miles from Palestro. In this encounter, 
 where disciplined valour was opposed to fanatical courage, 
 the insurgents were totally defeated, and Mokrani slain. 
 The death of this leader and the loss of the battle was a 
 fatal blow to the insurrection, so that the chiefs now 
 thought only of tendering their submission. The victory 
 also saved the lives of the prisoners, who had undergone 
 much ill-treatment; every day they had to hear that it 
 was to be their last, that the French had been everywhere 
 beaten, and that nothing was left them but the city of 
 Algiers. After the defeat of the Arab troops, the Amin 
 el Oumena, knowing that no hope remained for the cause 
 of independence, tried to purchase a remission of his 
 crimes by giving up the captives to General Ceres ; thus, 
 after twenty-two days of incarceration, they were set at 
 liberty. 24 
 
 In the environs of Alma about twelve persons had 
 been assassinated, and at Palestro fifty-four fell victims 
 to the cruelty and perfidy of the Arabs, without taking 
 account of the wounded. 
 
 Many interesting episodes in this terrible drama 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 238 
 
 might be mentioned, but we shall add only the following 
 to those already given. 
 
 On the night of April 20, two Spanish colonists, 
 Molinas and Pepe Camarada, after they had retired to 
 rest, were attacked by some natives who had entered 
 their gourbi. Pepe was killed before he had time to 
 defend himself, Molinas however seized his double- 
 barrelled gun and bred at the assailants, who answered 
 by three discharges, none of which struck him. The 
 Arabs then made off, pursued by Molinas, who was a 
 famous huntsman and a dead shot. He had often fol¬ 
 lowed more formidable, but less treacherous game. 
 Coming up with the chase which, in the fine African 
 night was conspicuous by the white burnous, he brought 
 down one of the villains. When he bred from the hut 
 he had mortally wounded another, who afterwards died 
 in prison, where he related what had passed ; the second 
 was condemned to death, when judgment was passed on 
 such of the insurgents as had added private murder to 
 the crime of revolt. 
 
 Those who seek Arab protection, and ‘ eat the salt ’ 
 of Arab hospitality in times of war, may learn the fate 
 that awaits them by the following narrative. Four 
 colonists, Lallemand, Lemaitre, their wives, and a 
 woman named Rosarie, terribecl at the insurrection, 
 sought safety under the roof of Si Said ben Mohamed, 
 Cai'd of the Khachnas. This chief at once promised 
 them shelter, and they were received into his house, 
 where they remained his guests during two days, after 
 which, wishing to be taken to Alma, the Cai'd consented, 
 adding that he would accompany them with an escort 
 for their defence. 
 
INSURRECTION OF 1871 . 
 
 239 
 
 When they set out, instead of going towards Alma 
 by roads on which they would have met none of the 
 rebels, he took one that led to the camp of Tidjellabin, 
 where they soon found themselves in the midst of 
 armed men. Here Si Said ben Mohamed was asked 
 what he intended to do with his prisoners, one of the 
 chiefs suggesting that they should be taken to Tenda, 
 where there were some other captive colonists. ‘ See,’ 
 said the Caid, ‘how I shall send them to join the 
 prisoners at Tenda,’ and, raising his gun, he fired at 
 Lallemand, whom the ball only wounded, but the de¬ 
 fenceless victim was at once dispatched by the Cai'd’s 
 Khodja. The other men who had formed the escort 
 followed his example, the wife of Lallemand, Lemaitre, 
 and his wife were also slain in cold blood. The other 
 woman, on seeing these shocking murders, made her es¬ 
 cape for the present. 
 
 This quadruple assassination raised the Cai'd in the 
 estimation of the people, and so great was his prestige 
 from this moment that he was now looked upon as one 
 of their principal chiefs. Rosarie succeeded in reaching 
 the farm of the Corso, where she arrived quite exhausted 
 and unable to go farther. Here a native called Ali bel 
 Kadi bel Merdassi, whose name deserves to be recorded 
 for he took compassion on the Christian, gave her food, 
 and as she w as thirsty he went to fetch her some w^ater. 
 He was perhaps the only Arab who had shown disin¬ 
 terested humanity during the insurrection. When he 
 returned he found the unfortunate Rosarie expiring 
 under the yatagan of a man, who had pursued her from 
 the camp of Tidjellabin. 
 
 All honour to the poor Bedouin Ali bel Kadi, whose 
 
240 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 one good action—like an oasis in the sand makes a 
 verdant spot in this desert of crime. 
 
 In our indignation at the cruelty of the Arabs at 
 Palestro and Alma—although one evil deed cannot 
 excuse or palliate another—we must not forget that 
 people in a higher state of civilisation, when blinded by 
 bigotry and fanaticism, have perpetrated abominable 
 acts on a larger scale. In Christian lands victims 
 have been immolated on the altar of Religion who 
 were the countrymen of their murderers, professing the 
 same faith, but differing on some particular point or 
 
 dogma. 
 
 Who can think without horror on the Sicilian 
 Vespers, so called because the hour of prayer was made 
 the signal for assassination ? the slaughter of the Albi- 
 genses, or that of the Huguenots in France ? or, looking 
 nearer home, if accident had not discovered the Gun¬ 
 powder Plot, it would have been followed by an exter¬ 
 minating massacre of the Protestants all over England. 
 For the horrors of war we need not go farther back than 
 our own times : the barbarous way in which the Prussians 
 conducted the late invasion of France shows that civili¬ 
 sation has little to boast of in point of humanity. If 
 Christian nations can thus forget the lessons of charity 
 and forbearance, inculcated by the Divine Founder of 
 their religion, what can we expect from ignorant Arabs, 
 fighting for their independence, who had been told by 
 their Marabouts that to kill a Christian is to secure a 
 place in paradise, and whose chiefs promised them in 
 this world a millennium of happiness after they had ex¬ 
 tirpated the foreign rulers of their country ? 
 
24 i 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 PALESTRO TO THE COAST—DELLYS TO CONSTANTINE. 
 
 £>u fjetltgeS unb weiteS 2Xcer/ 
 
 23te tft betn ^Cnblict mtr fo fyefyr! 
 
 ©el) mir tm frutjen ©trafyl gegrufit.— Stolberg. 
 
 Thy hand 
 
 Diffused thro’ endless space this limpid sky, 
 
 Vast ocean without storm, where these huge globes 
 Sail undisturb’d. —Mallet. 
 
 Returning sea-wards we now continue our excursion. 
 At Azib Zamoun we fall into the direct road to Dellys ; 
 the drive between these two places is one of three hours 
 in the diligence. 
 
 As we approach the latter town the country becomes 
 extremely picturesque, the road being cut out of the 
 mountain-side. In the immediate environs are delightful 
 gardens, and orchards which produce the excellent fruit 
 for which Dellys is famous ; and at a short distance is 
 the valley of the Sebaou, which ought to be visited by 
 every admirer of fine scenery. 
 
 It was in this little Kabyle town that the French first 
 found themselves face to face with that warlike race, 
 which had never been subjugated, not even by the con¬ 
 quering legions of Rome. Accustomed to be charged by 
 
 R 
 
242 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 the Arabs in the open field, as we have seen at Staoueli, 
 the invaders now found themselves before a second 
 Saragossa, for here also the Kabyles, shut up in their 
 houses, defended their homes like heroes, the women, 
 who took their share in the struggle, fighting with 
 the ferocity of savages. Each dwelling had to be sepa¬ 
 rately besieged ; when taken, the defenders retreated to 
 ' ,ieir gardens, which were fortified by palisades, and here 
 the contest was renewed. Dellys was not permanently 
 occupied by the conquerors of Algeria till 1844. 
 
 The ancient city of Rusuccures was long supposed to 
 have stood on this spot; but an inscription, lately dis¬ 
 covered a few miles from Dellys, points to another site 
 as having been that of the Roman town. 
 
 In more modern times, when the two notorious 
 corsairs Barbarossa and his brother Kair-el Din divided 
 the regency between them, the latter established his 
 piratical government at Dellys. 
 
 It was late in the evening when we went on board 
 the steamer, and we were soon after gliding silently 
 along the moonlit shore. 
 
 An Italian writer has remarked that the pleasantest 
 sea-voyages are those made near the coast, as the most 
 agreeable journeys on land are when the road lies near 
 the sea. 
 
 On the other side of the Mediterranean the ride 
 along the Liguria—the blue sea spread out before us to 
 the distant horizon, the varying colours of the water, 
 with feluccas and fishing boats cruising about—is 
 charming, whilst here, sailing by the Algerian coast, the 
 bold rocks, verdant hills, Moorish towns and villages we 
 pass in ever-changing succession, are not less delightful 
 
DELLYS TO CONSTANTINE. 
 
 243 
 
 to see, and both bear out the truth of the poet’s; obser¬ 
 vation. 
 
 We have in these pages often spoken of sunny days 
 in the South, and ungrateful should we be if we did not 
 acknowledge their charms and exhilarating influence; but 
 night is also beautiful. Night—particularly at sea, when 
 we are on the great waters, which then so much resemble 
 the grey blue canopy above them—is indeed the season 
 for contemplation. The starry firmament is a grander 
 scene—if less attractive to some, because it is less com¬ 
 prehensible—than even the lovely creation which day 
 presents to our view. Every star we see is a world, and 
 a world probably inhabited by an order of beings of 
 whom we can form no conception. In an African night 
 all these planets and stars seem to shine brighter, through 
 the transparent atmosphere. 
 
 The least reflecting mind must sometimes soar beyond 
 the confines of the earth on which we are placed, and in 
 the unbounded space above try to conceive something of 
 the stupendous work of the Almighty. If with our 
 limited faculties we can understand little, elevating our 
 thoughts to those regions may cause us to reflect at least 
 on the Supreme Being who created the universe. 
 
 As we passed headlands, on which stood castles or 
 Roman ruins, these conspicuous objects, seen under the 
 cold light of the moon, had a singular and at times a 
 fantastic effect. 
 
 On board, the scene also harmonised with the hour, 
 and with the land we were coasting. Some three or four 
 hundred Arabs, enveloped in their burnous, lying asleep 
 on deck, looked like an encampment by moonlight, whilst 
 an omnibus, which had been shipped at Algiers, might 
 
 r 2 
 
244 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 have been taken for a caravansary, and the sea for the 
 
 ‘ /Glorious night, thou wert not made for slumber,’ 
 said the poet, and truly if the night he apostrophised 
 wan like this ; but poor human nature requires the sweet 
 restorer, so we did as the Arabs had done before us—we 
 retired to rest. 
 
 When we came on deck at daybreak the next morn¬ 
 ing, the rising sun, casting its golden rays over a lofty 
 promontory on which stood an ancient temple near some 
 olive-trees, lighted the group ; thus painting a picture of 
 Day, as the moon a few hours before had shown us one 
 of Night. 
 
 Soon afterwards we arrived at Bougie, built on the 
 south side of the Gourai'a. Rising up this rocky eleva¬ 
 tion, with high mountains in the distance, the town from 
 the sea looks striking and picturesque. Bougie stands 
 on the Western shore of the extensive bay formed by the 
 capes Carbon and Cavallo. 
 
 When we ascended the heights above the city we 
 were not less struck with its advantageous situation in¬ 
 land than we had been impressed with its appearance 
 from the water. The fertile valley of la Soummam, 
 stretching out from its very gates, opens a passage into 
 the mountains of the Grande Kabylie. A road through 
 the Pass of the Chabet has been piany years in course of 
 construction, but the engineering difficulties, which are 
 great in proportion to the grandeur of the scenery, and 
 the obstacles opposed by nature, still retard its comple¬ 
 tion. This magnificent gorge through the most moun¬ 
 tainous part of Algeria is equal to any of the celebrated 
 passes in Europe, but these summits of the Atlas range 
 
DELLYS TO CONSTANTINE. 
 
 245 
 
 seen from a distance are somewhat monotonous, their 
 forms repeat themselves too often, and do not offer that 
 variety which is so pleasing in natural objects. 
 
 Bougie, originally built by the Carthaginians, has 
 been successively occupied by the Romans, who gave it 
 the name of Saldoe, the Kabyles, who made it their chief 
 city, and by the Spaniards, who were established here 
 till driven out by the Turks. 
 
 As late as the sixteenth century Roman villas, 
 ornamented with mosaics and elegant sculptures, were 
 still to be seen in the immediate vicinity. 
 
 Continuing our sail, a few hours brought us to 
 Djidjelly. Very different from Bougie is its aspect from 
 the deck of a vessel. The inequalities of the ground 
 about it are inconsiderable, but the mountains of the 
 Kabylie rise in the background. Tall palms, bamboos, 
 bananas, aloes, and other trees and plants growing near 
 the water, and the rich Southern vegetation which is 
 spread over the whole landscape, give something of a 
 West Indian look to Djidjelly when seen from the sea, 
 into which the town advances, standing on a little penin¬ 
 sula. 
 
 The Carthaginians, who founded this city, gave it 
 the name of Igigellis. During the Middle Ages, and up 
 to a more recent period, Djidjelly had thriving commer¬ 
 cial relations with the opposite shores of Italy and the 
 South of France. 
 
 In 1664, during the reign of Louis XIV., a French 
 army, under the Duke of Beaufort, made a descent on 
 Djidjelly, and established itself in the place ; but the 
 town was soon after retaken by a Turkish force which 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 246 
 
 came to its relief, and obliged the invaders to return to* 
 France. 
 
 We are told that after the battle of Asculam, when 
 the officers of Pyrrhus came to congratulate the king on 
 his victory, he replied, ‘ If we gain another like it we 
 shall be inevitably lost.’ The victory of the Turks at 
 Djidjelly achieved its ruin, without the necessity of a 
 second triumph ; for, having introduced a new order of 
 things, the trade with Europe declined, and the number 
 of inhabitants decreased so rapidly, that at the begin¬ 
 ning of the last century only a few houses remained of 
 the once flourishing town. 
 
 The steamer remaining some hours at anchor, we had 
 an opportunity of going on shore to see the place, and of 
 making acquaintance with some of the natives. This, 
 we have -always found to be the surest and most 
 agreeable way of obtaining information relating to the 
 countries we travel in. Here we met with some people 
 from the village of Tassia du Tababort, who told us that 
 the little community had been alarmed the night before 
 by dreadful roarings of contending wild beasts ; the noise 
 seemed to come from one of the mountain gorges, a short 
 distance from their douar. A combat between lions and 
 panthers—as sometimes happens—appeared to be going 
 on at this spot, the cause of dispute being probably 
 some coveted morsel of prey. In the morning, when the 
 inhabitants of Tassia went to see what had caused the 
 disturbance the night before, they found the mangled 
 body of a large panther, which had been the victim of 
 the nocturnal struggle, pools of blood attesting the fury 
 and obstinacy of the combatants. 
 
 Englishmen who like sights of this kind may gratify 
 
DELLYS TO CONSTANTINE. 
 
 247 
 
 their inclinations better in the land of the Arabs t han at 
 home in witnessing prize-fighting between their coi jntry- 
 men—brutes in their way it is true—or in seeing bull¬ 
 dogs worry each other to please some who belong t o a 
 class of society which still retains the vitiated taste of 
 the last century. 
 
 A fight between wild animals in the freedom of 
 nature—a fight not brought about by the rational animal 
 man—surrounded by mountain scenery very different 
 from the arena or the cock-pit, must be a novel and 
 exciting spectacle, when it can be seen from a safe 
 place, such as the top of a tree where, concealed by its 
 foliage, we have a good view of the combat and a fair 
 prospect of a safe retreat. 
 
 Returning on board, some of the passengers sat 
 smoking and chatting under the awning spread over the 
 quarter deck; whilst others, who preferred silently to 
 contemplate the great ocean, or to admire undisturbed 
 the beauty of the coast, kept apart from the rest. As 
 we glided over the smooth water, scarcely rippled by a 
 breath of wind, we could not help reflecting how terrible 
 is this same element when stirred up by the violent 
 tempest ; then the ship which now seems to play and 
 coquet with the bright blue waves, which bear her gaily 
 on towards a safe harbour, is tossed about and buffeted 
 by furious billow r s which break about her and, dashing 
 great seas over the deck, sweep overboard all that stands 
 in their way. As the storm increases and the wind 
 whistles in the rigging, the frail bark plunges down the 
 abyss which opens before her ; then, carried up the next 
 bin; wave, she shakes and trembles as if in fear. As the 
 
 o 7 
 
 poor ship rolls, pitches, and rights herself, by turns, it is 
 
248 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 impossible for the stoutest heart to divest itself of a 
 feelin/g of apprehension, which is not diminished by the 
 sight, of the cork-jackets and life-belts which are sug¬ 
 gestively placed for the passenger’s speculation in his 
 cabin, whei :, prostrated by sea-sickness, he wishes he 
 hr.d never trusted himself on the Gulf of Lyons and 
 reflects that he has not only to arrive in Algiers in 
 safety—he must get back again ! But these are not 
 pleasant considerations. Let us enjoy the calm weather 
 and our cigar whilst we have them. Friendly tobacco, 
 glorious plant! Let those who envy others a pleasure 
 they cannot share defame thee ; for us, and for all who 
 do not abuse thy use, thou art—like wine in modera¬ 
 tion—a comfort and delight; thou wert not made in 
 vain when thou canst cheer the sad hour ; thou art not 
 hurtful, or thou could’st not be the companion of the 
 old ! 
 
 Soon after daybreak we anchored before Philippeville. 
 The impression made by this town—which is built up 
 the heights behind it—when seen from the steamer, is 
 sufficient to prove that a city standing on rising ground, 
 with the sea before it, may yet have an unpicturesque 
 appearance ; for Philippeville, with its plain new houses 
 and straight streets, has not the striking and pleasing 
 look of Algiers, or of those Italian towns which rise am- 
 phitheatrically from the water. 
 
 Philippeville occupies the site of Rusicada, and it is 
 amongst the ruins of this ancient city that works of 
 art have been found sufficient to form an interesting* 
 
 o 
 
 museum: that it was a place of considerable extent and 
 importance is proved by the remains of its former mag¬ 
 nificence, which are still to be seen in the neighbourhood 
 
DELLYS TO CONSTANTINE. 
 
 249 
 
 of the modern town. At the time of the Romans Ausi- 
 cada probably extended as far as Stoia, a village iCL ' 
 miles along the shore, which until last year was pr act * 
 cally the port of Constantine, the anchorage be 
 more secure than at Philippeville; but, the works vh'y 1 
 had been long undertaken to render the latter a sad e 
 harbour, being nearly completed, steamers and sailing 
 vessels now go there in almost any weather. 
 
 Philippeville itself is a very uninteresting place for 
 most travellers, but the beautifully wooded country about 
 it compensates for the dulness of the town. 
 
 A few hours’ sail brought us to Bone. 25 The harbour 
 is one of the best in Algeria, vessels of the laigest size 
 being able to discharge their cargoes on the quay. This 
 town has a considerable trade, and the mineial pioducts 
 found in its neighbourhood are of great value. The 
 country along the coast on both sides is very fine, and 
 magnificent scenery extends inland along a gieat pait of 
 the road to Guelma, and to St. Charles, on the other 
 route to Constantine. Bone is about two miles fiom the 
 site on which stood the ancient Hippone ; the lemainsof 
 
 a great city indicate the place. 
 
 St. Augustin, one of the most pious and eloquent of 
 the early Christians, passed forty years of his life 
 preaching the Gospel at Hippone, and a monument has 
 been erected to his memory on the ground where it once 
 flourished. 
 
 On a former journey we proceeded as far as Guelma, 
 wishing to see the country between Bone and that town. 
 On that occasion a romantic glen between the forest of 
 Beni Amran and Guelma was pointed out to us, 
 
250 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 as having been the scene of a fatal encounter with a 
 lion. , 
 
 One eve ;mg, not long before we passed that way, two 
 1 a ks, who had farms near the dell we are speaking of, 
 la y in ambush tor a lion which had carried off some 
 Cc -ttle from their douar by jumping over the enclosure. 
 
 Y\ hen the Arabs perceived their enemy approaching 
 both hied at the same time, the balls striking the body 
 of the maiauder, who bounded furiously on his assailants, 
 one of whom he instantly dashed down a ravine \ then, 
 spiinging on the other, he literally tore the flesh from his 
 bones. When satiated with blood the infuriated animal 
 left his victim and disappeared in the thicket. 
 
 People fiom the neighbourhood soon arrived on the 
 ground where this fearful drama had been enacted. 
 Coming up to the dying huntsman, who for a moment 
 had lecovered consciousness, one of his friends said, 
 * shall take thee to town, where the European doctor 
 will cure thee of thy wounds.’ ‘No,’ replied the brave 
 fellow, making an effort to speak ; ‘I know that I am 
 d\ ing, let me expire in my tent surrounded by my friends 
 and my children.’ He could say no more, his end was 
 di awing near, and the next day he died in great suffering, 
 but proudly disdaining to make concessions to the weak¬ 
 ness of nature. Like the gladiator of old, pain was to 
 him only a last enemy to be conquered. 
 
 We return to our present route, that of St. Charles ; 
 for, wishing to approach Constantine from the side where 
 it is the most striking, we chose this road. At about 
 eighteen miles from Bone we came to the lake of Fetzara, 
 below whose tranquil water lies a buried city. The road 
 skiits the borders of the lake for a distance of twelve 
 

 DELLYS TO CONSTANTINE. 
 
 z j* 
 
 miles, after which w T e passed through a wood of ? cor p_ 
 trees. We never see this beautiful feature in the Alg er j an 
 landscape without feeling regret and indignation 
 these forests are periodically set on fire by the nati ves 
 Were it not for such conflagrations, Algeria would ^ 
 richer in game than any country in the world. Thw 
 wilful destruction, which was carried still further at the^ 
 time of the Regency, originated at a more remote period. 
 History informs us that Queen Kai'na 26 a Berber princess,, 
 who reigned 709 of the Christian era, devastated the whole 
 coast, destroying all the stately trees which formed an 
 uninterrupted continuation of groves from Tripoli to- 
 Tangiers. In the present day, notwithstanding the 
 vigilance of the authorities, scarcely a month passes in 
 which extensive woods are not burned. When disco¬ 
 vered, the Arabs give tw r o reasons in extenuation of their 
 conduct; one is the desire—not the necessity—of pro¬ 
 curing more pasturage land for their flocks and herds; 
 the other, that it is done to dislodge the wild beasts, which 
 are the enemies of their cattle. 
 
 A society was formed in 1873 to plant new trees; 
 and, as they grow with surprising rapidity in Algeria, it 
 was hoped that such a restoration, united to a stricter 
 surveillance , might produce some good, if not remedy the 
 evil altogether. This was however found to be in¬ 
 sufficient, and it became evident that more efficacious 
 means must be resorted to. The question was therefore 
 thoroughly investigated by the authorities in Algeria, 
 who drew up a special statute to protect the colonial 
 forests; which, being submitted to the Government for 
 approval, was passed into law by the Chamber in 
 Versailles. 
 
 As the subject will only interest readers who deplore 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 252 
 
 the 1 q/ ss of tliese magnificent objects of nature, we shall 
 mere/y > that one of the principal clauses in the recent 
 Act makes tlie wll °le of the inhabitants of the district 
 in y^hich a forest is burnt responsible for the fire, and 
 obliges them to pay a collective fine if the perpetrators 
 Q f the crime are not discovered. When these are known 
 Aieir property will be sequestered. Those who do not 
 take into account the participation of the whole tribe in 
 this wanton mischief, may find that the new law punishes 
 the innocent with the guilty ; the fact is, that there is 
 not a single man in such an Arab community who does 
 not approve and abet the offence, and conceal his know¬ 
 ledge of the parties who committed it. 
 
 Experience proves that, in these exceptional cases, 
 this is the only effectual way of dealing with un¬ 
 civilised 01 evil-aisposed people who act in concert ) 
 and if some such stringent measures were introduced 
 into Italy, brigandage—which exists only through the 
 connivance and assistance of the peasants and landed 
 proprietors—would soon cease, and we should then be 
 ■able to travel safely in Sicily. 
 
 At St. Chailes the road joins the railway line from 
 Philippeville to Constantine. The fertile and wooded 
 country we had passed through here acquired another 
 character ; trees became fewer, and the land less and less 
 cultivated. As we proceeded the landscape assumed a 
 sterner look, not baie and arid, for a dull grey vegetation 
 covered the hills which rose about us. From time to 
 time we came in sight of a few Arab tents or gourbi, 
 .and near them loitered some solitary shepherds, too few 
 and too motionless to enliven the dreary prospect j 
 but, suggesting population, their presence made soli¬ 
 tude more apparent. 
 
253 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 CONSTANTINE 
 
 2Cd) itue fd)on mup ftd/g ergefyen 
 Sort in ero’gen ©onnenfdjetn/ 
 
 Unb tie 2uft auf jenen Sbotyen, 
 
 £) mte labenb mup fie fein! 
 
 SDodfj mic met)it beg ©tromeg Soben, 
 
 £)ei ergrimmt bajttnfdjen brauft— Schiller. 
 
 The fool to native ignorance confined, 
 
 No beauty beaming on his clouded mind : 
 
 Untaught to relish, yet too proud to learn, 
 lie scorns the grace his dulness can’t discern. 
 
 Du Fresnoy. 
 
 Soon after we had passed the Hamma station some 
 Cheiks, who were in the carriage with us, called our 
 attention to a city which stood on a lofty rock com¬ 
 manding every side from the finest position in the 
 world. ‘ That/ said the Arabs, as we caught sight of it, 
 between the hills, ‘ is Constantine—this is Africa—those 
 who have seen only Algiers and littoral have not been 
 in Africa! ’ 
 
 Grand and impressive is indeed the first view of 
 Constantine, placed as by enchantment on its mighty 
 pedestal of stone, in the midst of a vast mountain-bound 
 panorama, where a treeless vegetation gives a wild ap- 
 
254 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 / 
 
 pearar lce to the country in singular harmony with the 
 Arab town. Queen of picturesque cities ! on her rocky 
 height, towering in pride of place, she overlooks all 
 
 aror jn< h 
 
 The rock on a nearer approach seems to have been 
 r «/,nt asunder by some convulsion of nature, leaving a 
 fearful chasm between the parts detached. Looking 
 down into this abyss, the head swims on the giddy 
 height. Below rolls a torrent, now seen in the depths 
 beneath, now hidden by shelving rocks, again it appears, 
 then losing itself for a moment in a cavernous opening, 
 shows itself once more before it dashes down the preci¬ 
 pice and forms the falls of the Roumel. 
 
 A fall of water is beautiful when, amidst mountain 
 scenery, in the stillness and solitude of nature, it rushes 
 from under the dark foliage of trees and, leaping over 
 perpendicular rocks, is thrown foaming from crag to 
 crag till, with one last bound, all veiled in spray, it 
 reaches the ground with a crash of thunder ! 
 
 The Roumel rolls its restless stream in a yet grander 
 scene. High above its water—suspended in mid-air—a 
 natural bridge, which crosses the gorge, spans the abyss 
 from side to side, whilst higher up still rises the steep 
 wall of rock, on whose summit stands an unseen city. 
 Wild birds soar above, and below smiles a lovely valley, 
 which owes its rich vegetation to the impetuous torrent, 
 now a gentle river calmly flowing between its banks. 
 
 But we have been carried away with the current, for 
 we were speaking of the great cleft round Constantine. 
 In this terrible opening eagles and vultures fly and 
 scream, whilst on the roofs of the old houses which over¬ 
 hang its precipitous edge a colony of storks build their 
 
CONSTANTINE. 
 
 255 
 
 -enormous nests. As they stand motionless on their long 
 legs on the tops of the buildings, they look like 
 sculptured figures on the superstructure. 
 
 When we consider the solid base on which this re¬ 
 markable city rests, the mind wanders back to the remote 
 period when this bare rock, which man has chosen for 
 his habitation, was a silent stone standing in the solitude 
 of nature. 
 
 The open country round Constantine which, far as 
 the eye can reach, extends to the blue highlands of the 
 Kabylie, has not the monotony of a plain, for the 
 immense space is diversified with mountains and hills, 
 .some of the most striking in form rising near the city. 
 The highest of these, the Mansoura, commands the town, 
 and was fortified at the time of the Romans, the remains 
 of an old fort having been discovered whilst digging the 
 foundation of a new one. Those who ascend this height, 
 or the Sidi-Mesid, obtain a magnificent view over an 
 unequalled panorama. 
 
 We shall conclude our description of the situation of 
 Constantine by remarking that the astonishment and 
 admiration we feel when we see grand objects in nature, 
 such as lofty mountains, the sea, and others, is not 
 diminished when they become familiar to us ; on the 
 contrary, it is by contemplating them frequently that we 
 learn to appreciate their sublimity. Such has been the 
 impression the matchless position of this city has made 
 upon us ; for the longer and oftener we looked at it, the 
 •stronger became the wonder and pleasure which the first 
 sight had inspired. 
 
 As a town Constantine is a very agreeable residence. 
 The European quarter possesses the comforts of 
 
256 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 Algiers, or of a large city in Europe ; such as excellent 
 hotels, elegant cafes, carriages, fine broad streets lighted 
 with gas, footways, shops, &c., and the town is super¬ 
 abundantly supplied with water. Although the Algerines 
 have so much to say against civilisation, some of them 
 clo not carry their prejudices so far as to deny themselves 
 the enjoyment of a good dinner with wine ; for, if this 
 be an acquired taste, it does not take long to learn, and 
 the Franco-Arab officers soon prefer European fare to a 
 dish of couscoussou. At our hotel the Cheiks who had 
 travelled with us dined in the saloon in company with 
 other Arab chiefs. All seemed to relish French cooking, 
 and each emptied his bottle as if the inspiring beverage 
 had not been forbidden by the Prophet. The dining¬ 
 room at the Hotel de Paris, where covers are laid for 
 300 guests, is lively and fashionable at the convivial 
 hour, the uniforms of the European officers and the 
 picturesque costumes of the Arabs—many of whom 
 wore the French and English Crimean medals—relieving 
 the less gay dresses of the mixed company. We may 
 here remark that the natives of Constantine are more 
 sociable in general than those of Algiers, they are also 
 more friendly in their intercourse with strangers than are 
 the Arabs in the capital, or the Kabyles who, being the 
 least resigned to foreign occupation, are the most reserved 
 towards the Roumis. 
 
 A party of our countrymen who were staying at the 
 hotel dined in the saloon. They belonged to the long 
 list of English who speak to foreign waiters in the 
 language of Shakespeare, travellers who are little disposed 
 to be pleased with anything out of their own island, but 
 
CONSTANTINS. 
 
 257 
 
 are ever ready to find fault with all that is not exactly 
 as it is there. 
 
 The garcon, who did not understand one word of 
 the fluent English in which he was addressed just as if 
 he had been serving in a London tavern, impressed with 
 the conviction that a beef-steak is’all that a Briton 
 desires and requires, went to order the national dish in 
 the kitchen. The company, becoming impatient when 
 not further attended to, called out again for the waiter, 
 who now started off in search of the chef who was the 
 linguist of the house. We heard him say ‘beef-steak no 
 cook,’ but we were not able to make out whether the 
 steak was obstinate and 'ivould not be cooked, or whether 
 the slice was not yet cooked enough. 
 
 Our English tourists and temporary residents may 
 be divided into two categories ; those who are sociable, 
 intelligent, and amiable, whose manners and characters 
 ai e unexceptionable, and those who are the most unrea¬ 
 sonable, leseived, selfish, and prejudiced beings in 
 existence, always cairying with them the supercilious 
 look of contempt for what they have not the discernment 
 and feeling to appreciate. Unfortunately the latter 
 predominate, no people travel more than this class. 
 We meet them everywhere ; from the Alps to the Andes, 
 fiom Dan to Beersheba. None go abroad with so little 
 advantage to themselves \ not only do they profit nothing, 
 
 but most of them return, like their boxes, all the worse 
 for the journey. 
 
 It is said that travelling expands the mind, rubs off 
 the rust of prejudice, teaches much, makes us more 
 tolerant, less vain, and consequently more agreeable. 
 So it may be, if we journey not only to see other lands, 
 
 S 
 
258 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 but also to learn something of their inhabitants. To 
 accomplish this several things are needed , it is ab¬ 
 solutely necessary to know the language of the country 
 we visit, and knowing it, we must be neither taciturn, 
 suspicious, nor prone to jump to conclusions, but coui teous 
 and affable to those we addiess 01 who speak to us. 
 To fail in this is to deprive ourselves both of instruction 
 
 and pleasure. 
 
 How is it possible that the strangers in whose midst 
 the English here, or on the European continent, leside, 
 can become known to our countrymen, when these keep 
 themselves apart, forming a colony and a coterie amongst 
 themselves ? It is this separation which has made them 
 known to foreigners rather by their insularities and un¬ 
 sociable habits—rendered more evident because they are 
 contrasted with the urbanity and generally pleasing 
 manners of the people in whose territory they sojourn 
 for a season—than for the good qualities which English¬ 
 men really possess. 
 
 Those who have seen the Arab quarter of Algiers 
 will find little to interest them in that of Constantine, 
 where there is neither bit nor vestige of the Moorish 
 architecture which is so striking and beautiful in the 
 c oital j neither have the few wretched shops the dis¬ 
 tinctive character of those which so please the aitist and 
 man of taste in the latter place. Some dirty lanes and 
 poor-looking buildings, such as may be seen in Europe, 
 are all we meet with; the terraced roofs—a feature 
 peculiar to Southern architecture—are entirely wanting, 
 the climate in winter not being suited to them. 
 
 Speaking of the old town, we may mention that from 
 Sidi Rached, the point which forms the apex of the 
 
CONSTANTINE. 
 
 259 
 
 triangle—the shape of Constantine—the unfaithful 
 wives of former days were thrown, like Manlius from the 
 Tarpeian Rock, into the gulf below. A proof that 
 neither seclusion, adjars, nor houses without windows-—- 
 for women have eyes if their dwellings have none—can 
 prevent the frail sex from going astray if they be so dis¬ 
 posed. 
 
 One of these unfortunate women, who had been cast 
 over the precipice, was suspended in mid-air, owing to 
 her dress spreading out, and thus serving as a parachute. 
 She reached the bottom in safety, an accident which did 
 not save her life ; for, being one of the wives of the Bey* 
 he ordered her to be beheaded. 
 
26 o 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 AT CONSTANTINE.—THREE LION STORIES. 
 
 Si quisiera canonizar mis vicios dandoles el nombre de virtudes, diria 
 que mi pereza era una indolencia filosofica.— Gil Bias de Santillana. 
 
 35ort erblicf id) fd)6ne vfjugel/ 
 
 Gntrig jung unb en?tg gritn ! 
 
 £att’ id) @d)it)ingen/ i)dtt’ id) glugeb 
 $Kad) ben Ipiigeln 309’ id) i)in.— Schiller. 
 
 In Constantine the intense laziness—or philosophical 
 indolence—of the lowest class of the population shows 
 itself more than in Algiers, where a greater number 
 bring the produce of the fields their wives cultivate to 
 sell in town, and where the Kabyles are industrious, and 
 many Arabs have some kind of occupation. Here in 
 the squares and streets the latter lie stretched on the 
 ground basking in the sun, their faces turned towards 
 the luminary in defiance of ophthalmy 27 and sun-stroke. 
 
 If we did not know that a few dates, a cup of coffee, 
 and a paper cigar keep an Arab alive, and that he makes 
 a coarse burnous—which covers dirt and nakedness at 
 the same time—last for years, we should be puzzled to 
 say how he manages to sustain an independent and— 
 after his own fashion—a happy existence. He never 
 
CONSTANTINE. 
 
 261 
 
 changes his dress ; summer and winter it is the same, 
 for, like the Spaniard, he thinks that what keeps out the 
 cold can keep out the heat. 
 
 When an Arab’s burnous becomes insupportable from 
 filth and vermin, he goes to a river, strips, washes his 
 only garment, and then—naked as Adam before he 
 covered himself with fig-leaves—lies down on the grass 
 till it is dry : of shame, or even decency, he has no con¬ 
 ception. 
 
 One day at Constantine we saw a Bedouin making 
 his toilet in a public garden, close to the principal 
 entrance. He had just pulled off his ragged burnous and 
 gandoura, and at the moment we passed the gate he was 
 slipping a newly-bought shirt over his naked person ! 
 
 We called the attention of the custos to this exhibi¬ 
 tion of primitive life. He threw the cast-off toggery over 
 the hedge, and pushed the owner after it, assuring us that 
 the same thing happened very often, the Arabs being 
 quite incorrigible, and that it was impossible to make 
 them understand why civilisation and propriety could 
 not tolerate these original manners and customs. 
 
 It must not be imagined, because the Arabs dislike 
 labour and delight in repose, that they are incapable of 
 hard work, when they have an object to gain in doing it. 
 Some go to large towns, particularly the seaports on the 
 littoral, for the purpose of earning and hoarding money. 
 The water-carriers in the capital, for instance, all come 
 from Biskra, and, after remaining a few years in Algiers, 
 during which they acquire what to them is a little 
 fortune, they return to their native oasis, marry, and pass 
 the rest of their lives under the shade of a palm-tree. 
 
 This pastoral notion of happiness reminds us ot a 
 
262 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 picture of ideal bliss, which was sketched out by the 
 French banker who changed our notes in Constantine. 
 He was a thorough man of business, who understood 
 rates of exchange, profit and loss, and conducted a 
 flourishing concern in a style which did honour to the 
 commercial spirit of his country. 
 
 The conversation having taken us to the Sahara, the 
 banker to our astonishment became enthusiastic and 
 eloquent on the poetry of the desert, the charms of 
 solitude, and the virtue of abstinence. ‘ This plodding 
 material existence,’ exclaimed the man of money, ‘ is 
 not suited to the aspirations of my nature ; I was not 
 born for ledgers and figures ; away with this tight dress* 
 throw over me a burnous, release me from the constraint 
 of society, give me space and liberty, and I could be 
 happy on a date in the wilderness ! ’ 
 
 As artists—amateur artists at least—we had some¬ 
 times indulged in fanciful anticipations of a scene entirely 
 new to us—even the desert might be better than its 
 reputation—but our imagination had not been up to 
 this. 
 
 To return to our subject, the indolence of the natives. 
 
 An Arab, who would refuse regular and steady labour 
 with a moderate remuneration, will not hesitate to 
 undertake a dangerous enterprise in which more money 
 is to be gained in less time ; thus many risk their lives 
 in confronting the lion or panther in order to obtain in 
 one night the government reward of forty francs, offered 
 for the destruction of these animals ; he will even accept 
 hard work which is soon over but well paid. 
 
 We were one day looking down into the chasm 
 round the city, when we observed what appeared to be 
 
CONSTANTINE. 
 
 263 
 
 two goats in the depth below, and we weie won leiing 
 how even that sure-footed and adventurous creature 
 could get there, when some people who were watching 
 the same objects informed us thac they weie two Aiabs, 
 who thus placed their lives in jeopardy to gather a pai- 
 ticular kind of herb which grows at the bottom of the 
 abyss, and all for the sake of the high price paid for this 
 valuable plant, which is said to possess peculiar medicinal 
 
 properties. 
 
 It was a fearful sight to follow the movements of the 
 men as they climbed up the steep wall of the lavine on 
 their perilous ascent back. With the aid of a pocket 
 glass we could make out that they had filled two large 
 sacks, which they had to get to the top as well as them¬ 
 selves. They took one at a time, the difficulty of their 
 retreat being increased by the inconvenience of their 
 burnous. One of the Arabs, by placing his foot on a 
 bit of projecting rock, and catching hold of a bush above 
 his head, managed to advance a few steps upwards, till 
 he reached a small ledge, on which he obtained a 
 dangerous footing. With the usual improvidence of 
 their race, they had not taken a rope with them, so that 
 he who had remained below was obliged to lift one of 
 the sacks which his companion pulled up aftei him. 
 
 In this manner, one always before the other, slowly 
 and carefully climbing the almost perpendicular side of 
 the chasm, where a single false step, or the breaking of 
 the twig they held on, would have piecipitated them 
 into the gulf beneath—after hovering between heaven 
 and earth, life and death, for an hour—they at last 
 attained the summit, and deposited half of their treasure 
 on surer ground. We saw them descend for the second 
 
264 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 sack, but did not stay to see the painful process repeated. 
 If they succeeded in bringing up the other bag, well did 
 they deserve the recompense, however great, which was 
 to reward their daring venture. 
 
 In regard to climate Constantine is cold in winter. 
 We were there in April, when we had fine bracing 
 weather ; cool in the morning early, the thermometer 
 usually marking 45 0 Fahrenheit, but rising from 65° to 
 70° in the middle of the day. Just the temperature for 
 climbing the Mansoura and other heights in the neigh¬ 
 bourhood before breakfast, which we did not fail to do, 
 always returning with a mountain-air appetite for our 
 dejeuner at ten o’clock. 
 
 We could say much more about Constantine, a city 
 with which we were greatly delighted, but it is time to 
 proceed to Batna on our way to the Sahara. Having 
 mentioned Batna, which the famous huntsman Chassaing 
 made his head-quarters—it being only six miles from 
 the foret des Cedrcs which is inhabited by lions—we 
 may add that formerly the people of that town used to 
 send the cubs they stole in the absence of their dams to 
 Constantine for Sale. The demand and supply appear 
 to have fallen off in the present day, although the 
 forest still abounds in noble game. 
 
 Under favourable circumstances the lion, when caught 
 young, may be tamed and domesticated. An instance 
 is related by M. Fenech—‘ Recits et Chasses ’—of a lion 
 living at the Hotel Octavie in Constantine, where the 
 influence of cooked food and the habit of seeing people 
 near him resulted in his becoming as tame as a dog. 
 This lion had been taken when a pup, and became the 
 cherished guest of his master, for whose care he seemed 
 
CONSTANTINE. 
 
 265 
 
 \ 
 
 very grateful. The way in which he was brought up so 
 modified his original nature that at the age of three 
 years he was allowed to go about the hotel ; he fre- 
 quented the dining-room, went up-stairs, and even took 
 the liberty of entering the apartments of travellers with¬ 
 out ceremony. More than one tourist must have been 
 terrified on seeing such an apparition, but none could 
 have been more startled than M. Ed. P., a gentleman who, 
 arriving at the inn after a long ride, retiied to lest im¬ 
 mediately, and being very sleepy forgot to close his 
 door. The following morning the sun shining through 
 the window admonished him that it was time to rise and 
 dress. He had made but one step towards the sofa on 
 which he had left his clothes the night before, when to 
 his consternation he saw a lion comfortably stretched 
 out on them. The most prudent thing that suggested 
 itself was to jump into bed again, and to covei all that 
 might tempt his terrible companion. Unfortunately 
 there was no bell within reach, so he was obliged to 
 resign himself to his fate. The lion experiencing the 
 effects of an empty stomach began to gape, displaying 
 to the observer—who was anxiously watching all his 
 movements from the bed—a row of grinders not at all re¬ 
 assuring, and, extending his powerful limbs, sprang from 
 the sofa, leaving the room in search of his breakfast in 
 the kitchen, to the great relief of the traveller. 
 
 As our subject has led to the introduction of a lion 
 story, we shall add two more in further illustration of it. 
 
 The following anecdotes related by M. Henri 
 Bechade in his interesting work ‘ La Chasse en Algerie, 
 show that the lion is sometimes equally inoffensive 
 when he has not enjoyed the advantages of civilisation. 
 
266 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 Some yeais since a detachment of the 70th regiment 
 of foot left Bone in Algeria for Souq-Ahras. After a 
 painful march under a burning sun, several of the men 
 sat down exhausted by heat, but one only remained 
 behind. Resting for a moment under the inviting shade - 
 oi an olive-tree, a deep sleep overcame him, from which 
 he did not wake till the following morning. If he had 
 had pleasant di earns during the night, very different was- 
 his return to the realities of life. A black lion of the 
 laigest size was sitting a few paces from him, looking 
 attentively at the soldier, and apparently watching the 
 moment he should awake. The lingerer at first thought 
 he must be still asleep and dreaming ; he rubbed his 
 eyes, shook himself, and tried to dispel the unwelcome 
 vision, but the terrible apparition remained before him. 
 Although greatly terrified, he seized his gun, but it was 
 not loaded, and he was afraid to put in a charge lest this 
 should excite the anger of the lion. 
 
 Almost distracted he got up, the lion did the same; 
 the man advanced a couple of steps, the lion followed 
 his example; the former quickened his pace, the lion 
 also walked faster. The agony of the soldier continued, 
 for his terrible companion was always at his side. 
 At last, after Avalking some time, the lion, who had 
 probably arrived near his den, gave a loud roar and 
 disappeared amongst the underwood. The man took to 
 his heels, and rejoined the company to which he belonged. 
 From this day however the word of command, the voice 
 of his comrades, the least noise, brought on an attack of 
 the nerves. If anyone called him suddenly by his name, 
 he bounded from his place, and only became calm when 
 he saw the person who had addressed him. His nervous 
 
CONSTANTINE. 
 
 267 
 
 system being entirely shattered, it was necessary to send 
 him home. 
 
 Besides the fabulous story of the lion of Florence, 
 there are real instances of the said sparing children. 
 Everyone in Algeria has heard of the lion of Jemmapes. 
 This village was formerly a halting place for travellers 
 en route from Bone to Philippeville ; here was a spring 
 of fresh and abundant water. A lion, which had long 
 established his head-quarters in the neighbourhood, was 
 accustomed to come to drink at this source. When 
 the Europeans began to build there he did not appear to 
 be much surprised, and continued to visit the fountain as 
 before, quenching his thirst as if he had not understood 
 that where the first indications of civilisation show them¬ 
 selves he—the representative of savage power—must 
 disappear. 
 
 Although he intended to injure no one, the colonists, 
 becoming alarmed at his visits, armed themselves, and 
 lay in wait for him one day a little before sunrise, when 
 they expected he would come to drink ; but the sba, as 
 if he had been warned of their intention, did not appear, 
 and his enemies, after waiting a long time in vain, were 
 obliged to retire. 
 
 At noon, when several children were playing about 
 the spring, the lion came as usual, approaching gravely 
 in the midst of the terrified group. After drinking long 
 and copiously, he left the place without paying any at¬ 
 tention to the little boys and girls who, having become 
 bold on seeing the lion so quiet, were trying to tease 
 him. The affrighted parents who had witnessed the 
 scene showed themselves grateful, for none of them 
 would kill the noble animal who had spared their 
 
268 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 children. His visits now became less frequent, and at 
 last they ceased altogether. 
 
 Incidents occur every year which, like the foregoing, 
 show the inoffensive disposition of the lion, when not 
 molested 01 attacked, and it is this quiet indifference 
 which has acquired for him the character of being mag¬ 
 nanimous and generous, although in truth he only obeys 
 the instincts of his nature—which is harmless when he is 
 not excited—for the lion can know as little of the fine sen¬ 
 timents a ttributed to him by some, as he is guilty of the 
 cruelty and ferociousness laid to his charge by others. 
 
269 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 CONSTANTINE TO BATNA. 
 
 Strange is the imagination’s dread delight 
 In objects linked with danger, death, and pain ! 
 
 Fresh from the luxuries of polish’d life, 
 
 The echo of these wilds enchanted me ; 
 
 And my heart beat with joy when first I heard 
 A lion’s roar come down the Libyan wind.— Campbell. 
 
 2Bte lartge foil ber SUbenfdv ba3 fdjwadje Sljier un$ affen, 
 £)et nur burd) gift bte 9ftad)t 33oben fdjlSgt? 
 
 SDte £ijt aUetn an t§m ift unfer ©cfyrecfen. —Willamow. 
 
 We left Constantine for Batna in the evening, so we did 
 not see much of the country through which we passed. 
 
 Our travelling companions were two Arabs, one a 
 Marabout who could speak a little French, and his 
 friend who did not know one word ; and, as we were not 
 much more advanced in Arabic, conversation with the 
 latter was not likely to be very lively or instructive. 
 The prospect was less discouraging with the Marabout, 
 a portly, jolly-looking personage—not at all in the Arab 
 style—whose good-humoured countenance indicated a 
 sociable disposition. With him we were soon on friendly 
 terms. As he was a Marabout, and we wished to be 
 enlightened on some points of his religion, that subject 
 
270 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS . 
 
 was discussed; and, this leading to comments on Arab 
 customs, the adjar was mentioned. As it was not worn 
 before the time of Mahomet, we suggested that the 
 Prophet was jealous of his young and favourite wife 
 Ai'sha, and that this might be the reason why he had 
 ordered the face to be covered. 
 
 Our Marabout was at first greatly shocked at the in¬ 
 sinuation, earnestly assuring us that it had never occurred 
 to him that the Prophet could have been jealous, and that 
 no one had ever before ventured to hint at such an idea ; 
 but soon after, looking at our proposition from a comic 
 point of view, he could not help laughing heartily at the 
 notion, although on reflection he perhaps thought there 
 might be something in it. The other Arab, who was 
 very curious to know what we were saying, often asked 
 his friend what it was ; but the Marabout would tell him 
 nothing about our profane suspicion, still less would he 
 confess to us Roumis that we might have divined the 
 truth. ‘ No,’ said the Mahometan, ‘ the Prophet was 
 wise, and the institution of the adjar is a proof of his 
 sagacity, for well he knew that there are two things 
 which an Arab cannot resist—wine and women—he 
 therefore prohibited the one and threw a veil over the 
 other. When we Arabs see a beautiful woman whom 
 we cannot marry, we fall desperately in love with her, 
 and lose our reason; Arab then malheureux , beaucoup 
 malheureux , life is worth nothing, pas dormir , pas 
 manger ,’ continued the fat priest sentimentally, affected 
 perhaps by this last reflection ! ‘ Such prostration 
 
 of mind and body is beneath the dignity of the 
 Arab race. If you, children of the cold North,’ 
 added our corpulent companion, ‘ can contemplate a 
 
CONSTANTINE TO BATNA. 
 
 271 
 
 woman’s charms unmoved, we sons of Africa cannot; 
 yes, the Prophet was right, he knew his people well, and 
 we are grateful for his injunction.’ 
 
 Changing the conversation, we introduced the often- 
 discussed topic of civilisation, but our Marabout was 
 more enlightened than our friend of the strong arm, fo\r 
 he acknowledged that all—Arabs and Turks—must bow 
 before it. 
 
 We afterwards saw a good deal of this Marabout, 
 who was one of those kind-hearted Arabs of whom we 
 have met many, for many there are who merit our re¬ 
 gard and esteem. 
 
 After our chat with the Muslim we had fallen asleep, 
 and had passed some time in the land of fantasy, when 
 we were suddenly awakened—not by the storm of wind, 
 rain, and hail which was rattling against the window of 
 our carriage, but—by a voice which rose high above the 
 elements, a sound we had never heard before, but which 
 we shall never forget. It was repeated, not menacing 
 but loud and terrible. There was no mistaking the roar 
 of the lion, and a lion very near us. ‘ It is the said,’ 
 said our Marabout, with the respect an Arab always 
 speaks of the king of the Atlas. We tried to catch sight 
 of him, but the weather was too bad and the night too 
 dark to allow us to distinguish anything. At dawn he 
 had disappeared, so we are not able to say we have seen 
 a lion—seen one, master not slave! 
 
 Soon after daybreak we arrived at Batna, a small 
 town possessing no great interest in itself, but which is 
 remarkable for three things ; the coldness of its climate 
 for a place so far South, a fact accounted for by the 
 elevated situation of the district, which is higher above 
 
272 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 the sea than even the country about Constantine ; its 
 vicinity to the old Roman town of Lambessa ; and its 
 being in the neighbourhood of the Cedar forest, the 
 home of lions and panthers. The lion, which is often 
 spoken of in Algeria, has his proverbial share in conver¬ 
 sation here, so near his royal domain. 
 
 We had not been long in one of the cafes when we 
 heard a captain of Spai's, who sat at the next table, re¬ 
 mind a comrade that it was time to set off, if he intended 
 to walk through the wood that afternoon. After the 
 latter had left we asked the officer to what the advice he 
 had given his friend referred. He told us that it w r as 
 dangerous to go through the foret dcs Cedrcs after dark, 
 but that there was little risk by day, even if we should 
 meet a lion, which sometimes happens. ‘ Noli me tan- 
 gcre is his device/ added the Spai’s ; ‘ the slightest sign of 
 hostility rouses his kingly indignation, but he does not 
 attack man unless he be insulted by that presumptuous 
 biped. Not many days since/ continued our informant, 
 
 * I had occasion to ride through the forest at break of day, 
 but had scarcely entered it when I saw a lion looking at 
 me over some bushes ; my fear was that, if his nocturnal 
 marauding had been unsuccessful, he might spring upon 
 my horse, but we were allowed to pass, qnitte pour la 
 peur. I had not advanced many steps, and was beginning 
 to congratulate myself on my escape, when a lioness ap¬ 
 peared on the other side of the road ; she was standing 
 still, but had evidently seen me; my horse at the same 
 moment caught sight of the terrible apparition and began 
 to tremble. Not to irritate the noble mate of the said, 
 I thought it best to walk slowly on. This policy—with 
 
CONSTANTINE TO BATNA. 
 
 273 
 
 a wild beast probably satiated with food—succeeded, 
 for we were permitted to proceed unchallenged.’ 
 
 Whilst we are so near the head-quarters of the lion 
 we may say something about his habits and the manner 
 of hunting this magnificent game, introducing other in¬ 
 formation which we have picked up in conversation with 
 the natives, or have acquired from French officers skilled 
 in cynegetics. 
 
 In Europe, when we speak of the lion, we talk of him 
 as we do of objects and events the interest of which is 
 diminished by distance. Few Englishmen associate the 
 most formidable of animals in his wild state with a three 
 days’ journey from London, and many would be disposed 
 to vote the black lion of Africa a myth, if they were told 
 that he and his tawny brother roamed about a region not 
 many hours from their own homes ; yet there he is, much 
 at the service of those who wish to see him to advantage, 
 here not altogether on their side. 
 
 It seems strange that in the very capital of the 
 country, in Algiers itself, with all the accessories of 
 European life about us, the home of this much-abused 
 monarch of the Atlas may be seen from the windows of 
 the houses. 
 
 He is indeed not far off; a couple of hours by rail 
 takes us to the foot of the lower range, and a mere trip 
 across it brings us to the lion’s dominions. At this short 
 distance from Algiers a stray one may be met with ; but 
 the tourist, who wishes to tell his friends that he has 
 seen a lion , may be sure to find what he seeks on the 
 wooded slopes of the higher chain, for there are said to 
 be more of them in the province of Algiers than in the 
 other two ; or, if the traveller penetrate farther into the 
 
 T 
 
274 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 interior, such a rencontre will probably form an incident 
 in his journey to the Sahara. If it is during the day the 
 meeting takes place, the said may be walking quietly 
 along, or perhaps crossing the path of the excursionist ; 
 sometimes he is seen basking near it lazily in the sun. 
 Indolent, but inquisitive, he will look at the strange 
 visitor with as much interest, and less trepidation, than 
 is felt by the man who has come so far to see and shoot 
 him. Unless he is hungry—which is seldom the case in 
 a country abounding in game fit for royalty—he will no 
 more think of harming the stranger than would his own 
 dog. Even when he has not broken his fast, man—who 
 is always ready to kill the lion if he can take him at a 
 disadvantage—is the last animal he would assault, but 
 he would certainly make a meal of him if he could get 
 nothing better. 
 
 After dark he is dangerous; at night his character, 
 or at least his humour, changes completely, partly 
 influenced by that sombre season, but more because it is 
 the time of action—the time for killing and eating. He 
 then becomes savage, and is as little like the same 
 creature in a state of repose, with his appetite appeased, 
 as man, when slaying his fellow-men in war, is like what 
 he is when the battle is over, and his passions are calmed 
 down. After dark therefore the lion will attack a man, 
 particularly if he meets him in the forest, although he 
 would not choose one of us as an article of food. The 
 African lion—the black lion in particular—is amongst 
 the finest of his species, but he is not always the ferocious 
 brute that people suppose him to be. A French writer 
 who had been fortunate or unfortunate enough to learn 
 from personal observation something of his habits and 
 
CONSTANTINE TO BATNA. 
 
 275 
 
 character, remarks that, ‘ if to so powerful a physique he 
 united only a little of the wickedness of the human race, 
 he would indeed be the most formidable of created 
 beings.’ It would seem as if the very consciousness of 
 power restrained his natural instinct. Like man, he kills 
 animals which are necessary to his subsistence ; but he 
 does not, like that rational egotist, immolate thousands 
 of victims of his own kind solely because he has the power 
 to do so. The lion takes the life only of the prey which 
 he can eat. If you let him alone he will not injure you, 
 assault him and he will defend himself: this is all that 
 can be laid to his charge. Inoffensive as he generally is, 
 he becomes terrible when wounded, for he possesses both 
 the will for revenge and the power to execute it. 
 
 In 1836 General Yusuf was present at a hunt in a 
 place called ‘ Le Rocher du Lion,’ in the province of 
 Constantine. This celebrated engagement with the king 
 of the Atlas—in which it is to be presumed that the 
 assailants were the inexperienced soldiers of his own 
 army—is not forgotten where it took place, for fourteen 
 men were placed hors dc combat , eight were wounded, 
 and six killed by a single lion. 
 
 Algeria offers to the enterprising huntsman an ex¬ 
 citing field for sport. 1 La chasse au lion, panthere, 
 sanglier, &c.’ is always open , and Europeans are welcome 
 to join in such parties dc chasse ; so that when our 
 English sportsmen, in all the parade of red coats, are 
 tired of running down the poor little fox, they have no 
 occasion to go so far as India in search of nobler game 
 when, a few hours from their own midland counties, they 
 can enjoy a lion-hunt in Africa ; and what adds to its 
 attraction is, that Arab etiquette cedes the post of 
 
276 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 danger to the foreigner. Those who envy Jules Gerard 
 Chassaing, and Bombonnel their laurels, dnd wish to 
 emulate these intrepid huntsmen, will not have left home 
 a week without a fight with the sai'd, and when they go 
 back—if they go back at all—they can take his skin 
 with them as a trophy and a token of their prowess. 
 
 Although some ardent spirits, men who like strong 
 emotions, go forth to meet the lion in single combat, 
 the usual way of attacking him is to form a party for the 
 purpose. Of the pluck and nerve of the Nimrod who 
 sets out alone to encounter such an antagonist there can 
 be no doubt, yet even then the advantage is on the side 
 of the huntsman, who, armed with a double-barrelled 
 rifle, lies in ambush where he knows the sba will pass; 
 here, lurking like one of the feline race waiting for its prey, 
 and sure of his aim, he watches till the lion turns in his 
 direction, or by making some slight noise causes him to 
 do so ; at this moment the man who can hit a wafer at 
 forty paces, fires, and the ball in its unerring line is 
 lodged just between the eyes. Such a shot or one 
 which strikes the heart is fatal, the danger is in the 
 huntsman’s missing his mark, which sometimes happens 
 when the lion unexpectedly moves his head ; in this case 
 not much trust can be placed in the second barrel; for 
 when wounded he at once bounds towards the bush 
 where his invisible assailant is hidden. Besides the 
 lion-killers before mentioned, there are many Arabs who 
 singly confront the said. Those who have killed one in 
 such a duel acquire great honour in the tribe to which 
 they belong. Some have shot several during their lives ; 
 only a few weeks ago an Arab of the tribe of the Ouled- 
 Driss killed one in his own garden, making the four- 
 
CONSTANTINE TO BATNA. 
 
 27.7 
 
 teenth which had fallen under his deadly mekahla. 
 But the plan generally adopted by the natives is to go 
 many together, well-armed, and on horseback, to the 
 haunt of the lion, it having been discovered before 
 setting out. Arrived at his den—some cavern in the 
 rocks—where they know that he is alone, for the presence 
 of the lioness and cubs might make the adventure some¬ 
 what hazardous, they range themselves in the form of a 
 crescent before his retreat. In order to induce the sba 28 
 to come out, some of the attendants go to the entrance 
 of the cave, and make all the noise they can, using 
 every expedient to arouse the animal, which at last 
 comes forth to see what is the cause of the disturbance. 
 When he sees all these people, evidently with hostile 
 intentions, he hesitates for an instant what to do. This 
 moment of vacillation is fatal. From every side a 
 volley of balls is poured upon him ; tortured with pain, 
 maddened with rage, and blinded by smoke, he bounds 
 hap-hazard on his assailants ; these having opened their 
 ranks after the discharge, the chances are against the lion 
 being able to seize one of his enemies ; if he does so, the 
 rest rush to the rescue, the Arab who is down trying to 
 defend himself with his yatagan which is as nothing when 
 the man is in the terrible grasp of the infuriated beast, 
 and the one he has caught hold of dies with him, as the 
 lion is shot by the other Arabs. 
 
 The following more detailed account of the manner 
 in which the lion is hunted in Algeria is in part from ‘ La 
 Chasse en Algerie/ a work already mentioned, and is 
 partly what has been told us by native huntsmen. 
 
 When the Arabs hunt the sba by day and on horse¬ 
 back, the riders form a line on the outskirts of a forest. 
 
27S 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 By throwing stones and raising tumultuous shouts, men 
 who are engaged for the purpose compel the lion to leave 
 his den, after which the noise made by the traqueurs 
 obliges him to take the direction of the horsemen. As 
 soon as the cavaliers perceive the said advancing with 
 slow steps and majestic air, they rush about with the 
 rapidity of lightning, brandishing their guns and yata- 
 gans, shouting and hurrahing with frantic gestures. The 
 horses, excited by the spur, and still more by scenting 
 the lion, are no longer to be kept in bounds. A giddy 
 disorderly gallop ensues, and in this storm of frenzy their 
 hoofs shake the very earth. The astounded animal stops 
 short to observe the strange scene. He forebodes dan¬ 
 ger, for, from every side he hears threatening cries and 
 sees only enemies around him. Whilst he hesitates 
 whether to go back into the forest which resounds with 
 the clamour made by the bushrangers, or whether to- 
 dash forward and try to break through the ranks of the 
 Arab cavalry, the signal for action is given. One of the 
 scouts aims'at the royal game ; whilst the rest, who are 
 unarmed, disperse and climb up trees. They have played 
 their part, that of the horsemen is now to begin. A volley 
 is discharged, the horses tremble and rear, for they know 
 that the lion will soon be upon them. In fact, rendered 
 furious by this aggression, he springs at the rash fellow 
 who has opened the hunt by firing at him, but the man 
 has already joined his companions on the trees. The 
 lion, resolved upon a victim, bounds towards the cava¬ 
 liers who, so rapid in their movements but a moment be¬ 
 fore, now drawing in their reins, meet him half way, and 
 he is fired at from every side. Again the wild evolutions 
 begin, and the sba is surrounded by a circle of fire—pow- 
 
CONSTANTINE TO BATNA. 
 
 279 
 
 der speaks around him. Soon the noble animal is pierced 
 by balls; not even revenge is in his power, but if he can 
 single out one of his enemies he prepares to spring upon 
 him. Whilst the lion watches his opportunity his adver¬ 
 sary is changing his place every instant; the hesitation 
 this causes the sba decides his fate, for it exposes him to 
 deadly shots, and amongst the many balls which bury 
 themselves in his body one at least takes the right direc¬ 
 tion and strikes him on the head or in the heart. Thus 
 unrevenged dies the huntsmen’s brave antagonist, unless 
 some imprudent wight gets within range of his terrible 
 claws, in which case the luckless one is sacrificed for the 
 rest. 
 
 Of a lion-hunt the Arabs philosophically remark: 
 ‘ He who kills him eats him, and he who does not kill 
 him is eaten by him ! ’ 
 
28 o 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII. 
 
 THE LION AND OTHER ANIMALS. 
 
 La chasse degage Fesprit des soucis, ajoute a la vigueur de Fintelligence, 
 elle amene la joie, et frappe d’inutilite Fart des medecins. 
 
 L homme qui s adonne a la cliasse fait chaque jour des progres dans le 
 couiage ; il appiend le mepris des accidents j il s’eloigne des gens pervers, 
 et il echappe a la corruption du vice. 
 
 Les jours de chasse ne comptent point [parmi les jours de la vie. Un 
 
 poete Arabs sur la Chasse. " 
 
 There’s such a charm in natural strength and power, 
 
 That human fancy has for ever paid 
 
 Poetic homage to the forest King.—C ampbell. 
 
 The Arabs are passionately fond of hunting. Speak of 
 the chase to one of these intrepid and indefatigable sports¬ 
 men, and you bring out the energy of his character \ his 
 eye sparkles, his tongue becomes eloquent, and the habi¬ 
 tual coldness of his demeanour vanishes, as he talks of 
 his gun and the said. It is forbidden to sell arms and 
 ammunition to the natives, but where is the Arab who 
 has not powder and a mekahla ! 
 
 In apparent contradiction to his staid and sober 
 nature he likes excitement, stir, and even noise. This 
 is obseivable not only in the field, but is evident on 
 
THE LION AND OTHER ANIMALS. 281 
 
 many occasions. At Algiers, when a ship of war salutes 
 the port, there is always a crowd of Arabs to listen to the 
 voice of the cannon. Military bands, drums, trumpets, 
 and other loud instruments are greatly to their taste. 
 They delight in fireworks when there are plenty of 
 rockets and squibs ! At such times the Arabs lay aside 
 their reserve, and let us see that they are pleased ; but 
 yet more demonstrative are they when engaged in a 
 perilous adventure, where din, commotion, and excitement 
 form part of the programme. 
 
 A French writer says, Tt is a remarkable feature in the 
 Arab character, that this people usually so serious, men 
 who scarcely know what it is to laugh, become gay and 
 lively when their lives are in jeopardy. At such a 
 moment they are not afraid to compromise their dignity, 
 for the fact of being in a critical situation is sufficient to 
 sustain their general reputation for gravity, although they 
 may jest in the face of danger.’ 
 
 In telling stories about the lion, several authors—on 
 the faith of Arab information—relate incredible anecdotes 
 about women, indignant at an invasion of their douars, 
 running after the culprit, and assailing the unwelcome 
 visitor with bitter invectives, calling him a robber, son of 
 a thief, stealer of poor people’s property, and so on, till 
 the sai'd, quite ashamed of himself, lets go his booty and 
 sneaks away like a guilty creature ! 
 
 If anything of the kind ever happened—and such 
 things are related in almost every book on the subject 
 published in Algeria—the most probable explanation is 
 that the lion, surprised and disgusted at the row and 
 hubbub made by the women, abandons his prey to 
 
282 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 escape more quickly from the tumult and the clatter 
 of female tongues, so disagreeable to his dignified 
 bearing. 
 
 Such attacks on the farms are of frequent occurrence. 
 They generally take place at night, and accounts of them 
 sometimes two or three together—may often be read 
 in the newspapers. 
 
 These coups de main on the part of his selvine 
 majesty do not show that the species is diminishing in 
 any considerable degree before the march of civilisation, 
 or that the king of wild beasts is less bold and enter¬ 
 prising in what he undertakes now, than he was formerly 
 when he had a wider field for action. 
 
 As will be seen in the list of Arab words, a douar is 
 an assemblage of tents forming a square or oval. In 
 the midst of them is an enclosed space, in which cattle 
 are kept in the open air. This enclosure—which is 
 called the azib—is in a manner fortified, but not really 
 protected, by palisades made of trunks of trees, &c. The 
 Arabs often lose some of their stock from the effects of 
 cold weather, which on the high table-lands is occasionally 
 severe enough even in Algeria to injure the health of 
 domestic animals; but the Arab intrenchments offer 
 scarcely better protection against the sba than they do 
 against the inclemency of winter. 
 
 It may not be easy to ascertain whether the lion, as 
 a rule, prefers wild game, or whether, when he wishes to 
 vary his bill of fare, his royal taste inclines to oxen, cows., 
 and sheep fed and fattened by man. Probably, like us, 
 he is fond of change. However this may be, to a power¬ 
 ful creature, rather indolent by temperament and habit, 
 a piovision of live delicacies guarded by canvas tents, 
 
THE LION AND OTHER ANIMALS. 283. 
 
 and protected only by sticks and branches ovei which 
 he knows he can leap, is a temptation too great and a 
 prey too convenient for his primitive and untaught 
 nature to resist. Perhaps the attack is not made with¬ 
 out some elementary strategy being observed, for the 
 marauder is said to reconnoitre the enemy s position 
 before he penetrates to its centre. 
 
 Nothing more dashing or bolder can be imagined 
 
 than such a rape in the azib by a lion. 
 
 It is night. Repose and silence in the douar are 
 suddenly broken by the barking of dogs and the bel¬ 
 lowing of cattle, which, with the instinct of feai, ap¬ 
 prehend the approach of danger. But too late; on 
 comes the lion ; disdaining all obstacles, with one mighty 
 bound he clears the high broad bariicade, and alights 
 like an aerolite in the midst of the flocks and heids 
 Seizing an ox or a calf, back he jumps over the fence 
 and makes good his retreat, carrying with him his prey 
 as easily as if it were a gazelle, befoie the camp is 
 alarmed by the commotion the incident has occasioned 
 in the farmyard. The Arabs say that the sba does not 
 roar when he makes his salto mortale. They also affirm 
 that he is so intent on his purpose—one of the great 
 elements of success—that if there should happen to be 
 ever-so-many people near the cattle in the yaid, he 
 pays not the least attention to them, but pounces on the 
 sheep or ox which suits him, and vanishes like art 
 apparition. 
 
 Although the sai'd usuallygets clear off when he makes 
 an attempt on a douar, he is sometimes followed in his 
 retreat; and the depredation he has committed then leads 
 to an exciting hunt. An instance is related by Gcneial 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 ^284 
 
 Maigueiitte, which will illustrate what we have said on 
 the subject. 
 
 ‘ The Arabs told us/ narrates the General, ‘ that 
 about two o’clock in the morning a lion had got into the 
 douar, by jumping over the fence which protected it. 
 To do this he must have cleared a palisade thirteen feet 
 high and thirty feet wide. Alighting like a thunderbolt 
 in the midst of the flock, he seized a large sheep, spring¬ 
 ing back with ii as easily as he had leaped in. Not 
 having been disturbed he made good his retreat, the 
 direction he had taken being indicated by a little wool 
 scattered along the road, but it was thought he had 
 not gone far to devour his booty. El-Mokhtar, an Arab 
 well acquainted with the habits of the sba, was consulted 
 as to what ought to be done. From the trace left by the 
 wool, he thought the bold robber was most likely sleep¬ 
 ing after his meal in a neighbouring thicket near a rock 
 called Kef-el Korab. Our Arab guide went on foot to 
 leconnoitre the spot, keeping a little in advance of us, as 
 he feared the sound of the horses’ hoofs might disturb the 
 said. It was agreed that if the lion should be in the bush 
 our conductor was to make a sign to us with his burnous ; 
 
 we were then to dismount and join him, making as little 
 noise as possible. 
 
 A march of half an hour brought us to the foot of a 
 high hill overgrown with trees, in the midst of which rose 
 an enormous mass of rock. This was the Kef-el Korab, 
 or Rocher du Corbeau, on the flat summit of which ap¬ 
 peared our Arab, making the signal for us to alight and 
 join him. Leaving our horses in charge of the attendants, 
 we went to meet El-Mokhtar, who was coming towards 
 us. His first words were to say that the lion was in a 
 
THE LION AND OTHER ANIMALS. 285 
 
 bush below the rock. The guide directed us to follow 
 him noiselessly, as we were to station ourselves on its 
 top, but on no account were we to throw away a useless 
 shot. “ A ball,” said our pioneer, “ which strikes neither 
 the head nor the heart has been fired for nothing.” 
 Having given this advice, he placed himself in front of 
 the column. I must confess,’ says the officer, who is re¬ 
 lating his first encounter with the said, ‘ that we were 
 none of us without a certain feeling of trepidation, for a 
 danger we confront the first time always appears greater 
 than those to which we have become accustomed. The 
 fight was about to begin. We knew that the lion, not¬ 
 withstanding his wounds, or rather in consequence of 
 them, rushes upon his aggressors, and that he has often 
 strength enough left to tear more than one of them 
 to pieces before he expires. Our guns were carefully 
 loaded ; mine was an excellent rifle, and I hoped to make 
 eood use of it. Our leader, having taken us by a circui- 
 
 o 
 
 tous route not to excite suspicion, led us to the top 01 
 the Kef-el Korab. This rock is as perpendicular as a 
 wall, and some forty-five to fifty feet high on the side 
 which overhangs the thicket in which the marauder was 
 concealed, but the foliage was so dense that we could dis¬ 
 cern nothing. 
 
 ‘ We now formed into line, holding our guns ready 
 for action ; several of the men had taken up theii posi¬ 
 tions, when one of the Arabs slipped and let his gun fall, 
 which made a sharp sound as it struck the stone. The 
 lion, which had probably been watching what was going 
 on, replied to the noise—which he took for a commence¬ 
 ment of hostilities—by a loud roar, and bounded out of 
 the bush towards us, bending young trees thick as a 
 
286 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 man’s arm as if they had been twigs. It was well we 
 had placed ourselves out of reach of his first spring, for 
 we should have got the worst of it, notwithstanding some 
 balls which struck him on a general discharge, but which 
 had no other result than that of rendering him more 
 furious. The height of the rock prevented the lion get¬ 
 ting at us by jumping ; this however he tried to do, 
 making several astounding bounds, roaring terribly all 
 the time. El-Mokhtar and I had reserved our fire, and 
 after the efforts the gallant animal had made to reach 
 us, we were able to take a steady aim just as he was 
 attempting another assault. 
 
 ‘The Arab’s ball struck him in the chest and, passing 
 under the right shoulder, came out at his side. I intended 
 to hit him between the eyes ; but, owing to a sudden 
 movement of his head, the charge struck him in the mouth 
 and broke a part of the lower jaw. These two last wounds 
 exasperated the sba to the utmost. He lashed his sides 
 furiously with his tail, tearing up the roots of trees and 
 stones with his fore feet, throwing them far behind him. 
 The combat was at its height when the lion, perceiving 
 that he could not succeed on this side, changed his tactics, 
 giving up his attack in front. We at first thought he 
 was running away ; but the Arab, who knew our valiant 
 antagonist better, thinking that like a skilful general he 
 was going to turn our position by taking us in the rear, 
 advised that we should seek refuge in the trees. It was 
 o-ood counsel, and we hastened to climb up the oaks on 
 the rock. The men left with our horses on an eminence 
 not far off accelerated our movements by calling out that 
 the lion was coming on the right and would soon be upon 
 us. We were in fact scarcely perched on the boughs. 
 
THE LION AND OTHER ANIMATE. 
 
 287 
 
 which bent under our weight, than he appeared, looking 
 for us in every direction. His aspect was appalling ; at 
 every respiration ensanguined foam burst from his mouth; 
 his bloodshot eyes seemed to emit sparks of fire ; his 
 black, bristling mane falling over his forehead added to 
 his strange and formidable look. He was a lion of the 
 largest size, and during the fight he seemed prodigious. 
 
 ‘ The action continued ; on our side we fired at him 
 whenever we had a chance ; and, as it is not in his nature 
 to climb like the panther, he only ran from one tree to 
 another, attracted by the reports of the guns and the 
 shouts which accompanied them. At last, having ap¬ 
 proached near me, I fired my third ball, which struck him 
 in the heart; he sank instantly to the ground, and his fall 
 was followed by loud acclamations; but once more, in 
 his struggle for life and revenge, he raised himself to his 
 feet and staggered one or two steps forward, in a dying 
 attempt to spring upon us. It was a final effort, in 
 which he fell back and expired. He had received seven¬ 
 teen balls. 
 
 < Long did we look upon the noble victim, now 
 lifeless at our feet. The Arabs, whose farm he had plun¬ 
 dered, were not sparing in their invectives, and exulted 
 in his death. As for myself, the battle being over, I 
 reflected that this lion had done me no harm ; and I was 
 conscious that I had taken part in the drama actuated 
 only by the vanity of being able to say I had killed a 
 lion. I felt how little and mean was this motive com¬ 
 pared with the glorious death of this courageous creature 
 which had braved us all, and I acknowledged that we had 
 only our guns to thank for the victory. Perhaps no 
 animal excites so much sympathy and admiration as the 
 
288 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 lion, for courage and strength are attributes often looked 
 upon as virtues to be admired, wherever they are found.’ 
 
 We shall say a few words about the panther, wild 
 boar, hyena, and jackal. 
 
 The zoology of Algeria is rich in wild animals, many 
 of which are hunted by Arabs and Europeans ; but 
 some, such as the two last mentioned, are considered 
 game unworthy of the chase. Besides the lion and this 
 ignoble couple, there are the panther, boar, ounce, lynx, 
 gazelle, porcupine, monkeys, and others. Amongst the 
 birds are the eagle, falcon, ostrich, and small game in 
 great abundance. After the sba, the panther—nemir— 
 is. the most redoubtable among the wild Beasts; for 
 man it may be said to be more dangerous than any other 
 inhabitant of the African forests. ‘ The most supple of 
 the savage animals of Algeria, the panther has a skin 
 soft, velvety, exquisitely clean, and elegantly spotted 
 with black, whilst its body is admirably proportioned : 
 when advancing in the silence of the forest, its undula- 
 tory movements displaying graces peculiar to the feline 
 race, one might suppose it to be the gentlest and most 
 inoffensive creature in the world ; but when, excited by 
 anger, it shows its white and sharp teeth, when its 
 smooth coat is ruffled, and its eyes flash fire, we feel that 
 a brute, possessing wonderful flexibility joined to a 
 ferocity so terribly armed, must be indeed dangerous.’ 29 
 The lion is less aggressive, less cunning, and not so cruel 
 as the panther ; he seeks his prey without caring to betray 
 his presence, he abandons the calm dignity of his cha¬ 
 racter only when he is obliged to defend himself, and he 
 seems disinclined to take advantage of his strength 
 unless he is forced to exert it. The panther, on the 
 
THE LION AND OTHER ANIMALS. 
 
 289 
 
 contrary, creeps furtively along the skirts of the wood 
 and lies concealed in the thick bushes, seldom showing 
 itself except to spring upon its prey ; it has not only the 
 appearance, manner, and stealthy step of the feline tribe, 
 but has their nature also. The Arabs have not the respect 
 for it that they have for the said. This noble animal, when 
 attacked, wounded, and surrounded by enemies, fights to 
 the last; the panther accepts battle only when it finds 
 retreat impossible, and it runs away whenever it has an 
 opportunity. It is not so often seen by day as the lion, 
 which is fortunate for the unarmed traveller, whom it 
 will attack when it is not hungry. The panther is not 
 hunted in exactly the same way as the lion ; fewer pre¬ 
 cautions are taken, and the presence of so many people 
 is not considered necessary. The system generally em¬ 
 ployed is for a party of men to set out very early in the 
 morning, before this nocturnal prowler has returned to 
 its den. Some traqueurs are placed on the rocks above 
 the cavern where it is usually found ; others, in order to 
 cut off its retreat, are stationed before the entrance, and 
 in the plain beyond. They observe the most profound 
 silence, and remain perfectly immovable. At break of 
 day the panther returns to its cave: surprised and irri¬ 
 tated at seeing people about a place so fatal to all in¬ 
 truders except the lion, it stops where it can hide itself. 
 Thus it often remains concealed near its abode, without 
 the huntsmen being aware of it; for it is only when the 
 sun appears above the horizon that the Arabs know the 
 panther cannot be far off, as its eyes are unable to bear 
 the light of day, and it will then surely make an attempt 
 to get into its lair; the opening is therefore guarded 
 
290 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 more carefully than before. Instead of the previous 
 silence, the Arabs now make as much noise as they can, 
 to induce the animal to leave its hiding place, but 
 generally without effect 5 to decide it to come out, one 
 of the rangers is sent to beat the bush. On a sudden 
 the panther starts furiously from its covert, scratching 
 and biting all who stand before its den and refuse to let 
 it pass. Unable to accomplish its object and believing 
 the wood to be full of enemies, it leaves it in a few rapid 
 bounds, and is next seen crossing the plain to gain 
 another forest. In making this attempt it is met by a 
 general volley fired by the men posted in the open 
 country. The frustrated brute stops confounded, hesi¬ 
 tates what to do, trembling and crouching like a cat, till 
 a shower of balls decide it to dash through the ranks of 
 the huntsmen. When it springs amongst them its 
 terrible claws leave bloody marks on its assailants ; if 
 wounded, its fury is redoubled, and it tears and bites 
 all who come within its reach. If the panther seizes a 
 man, and is not killed at this critical moment, the death 
 of the victim is as certain as if he were in the powerful 
 grasp of an infuriated lion. In almost every instance, 
 however, the panther is either killed on the spot, or it 
 makes its escape severely wounded, in which case the 
 Arabs take care not to follow the ensanguined trace it 
 leaves behind. Sometimes it springs over the heads of 
 the huntsmen and gets into its cave, where it would be 
 still greater madness to go after it. 
 
 Wild boars, antelopes, and porcupines are very 
 numerous in Algeria ; and being large game which is 
 food for man, they are the most frequently hunted. 
 The African boar, or sanglier, is said to be less vicious 
 
TILE LION AND OTHER ANIMALS. 
 
 29 r 
 
 than its cousin in Europe ; it is, however, larger, stronger, 
 and equally bold. The lion, which finds the flesh to his 
 taste, often attacks this bristly inhabitant of the woods 
 but does not always get the best of it. When young 
 the wild boar—Hallouf—is gregarious, but becomes 
 more exclusive when he attains his full size ; he is then 
 called a solitaire. 
 
 Although the lion and the panther find it easier to 
 deal with the younger ones, which they perhaps prefer 
 as being more delicate, a fight with a solitaire does 
 sometimes take place. A combat between one and a 
 lion was lately witnessed by some Arab and European 
 huntsmen. The sanglier, on being assaulted, took his 
 stand against the trunk of an old tree, and boldly con¬ 
 fronted his terrible aggressor. The lion roared and 
 crouched down some yards off, then sprang at his 
 antagonist, but was met by the weapons and tactics of 
 the veteran, which received the shock obliquely, lowering 
 his tusks to tear open the side of the lion, retreating 
 quickly after each encounter to his shelter against the 
 tree. The sba became more savage and determined 
 than ever, lacerating the thick hide of the boar with his 
 powerful claws ; but the solitaire, whose tusks left 
 bloody furrows on the body of his carnivorous opponent, 
 seemed little disposed to give in. More than once the 
 lion hesitated before that dreadful snout which, white 
 with foam and red with blood, always met him face to 
 face. It is impossible to say how the contest would have 
 terminated if the boar, in one of these onslaughts, had 
 not stumbled and fallen. The lion, profiting instantly 
 by the accident, seized his obstinate adversary by the 
 
 nape of the neck; the boar resisted and struggled 
 
 u 2 
 
292 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 violently, whilst the lion dragged it into a neighbouring 
 thicket. 
 
 Intending to attack the wild boar, the panther waits 
 for it near some pool, where the sanglier goes to drink 
 and wallow in its muddy water. Hiding itself amongst 
 the brambles, the panther remains motionless for hours 
 patient, for instinct tells it that the expected prey is sure 
 to come ; when the boar appears, its concealed enemy 
 bounds upon it quick as lightning, and with its claws 
 tears open the throat of its victim. The sanglier 
 writhes with pain, but in vain it tries to free itself from 
 the deadly grasp, till, uttering piercing cries, it drops 
 lifeless to the ground. 
 
 The hyena and jackal are not hunted by the natives. 
 The Arabs kill, but do not hunt them. Having for this 
 reason little interest for the sportsman, and not much 
 for the general reader, it will suffice to say a few words 
 about these mean quadrupeds. The hyena is supposed 
 by many to be dangerous and savage. This is a mistake ; 
 it is savage, but not dangerous. The Arabs, who know 
 it well, regard the hyena as the type of cowardice and 
 low instincts, a brute which runs away when attacked, 
 and feeds only on carrion. They have the same con¬ 
 tempt for the jackal, which is as timid in its nature and 
 as disgusting in its tastes and habits as the hyena ; both 
 are too weak and too pusillanimous to be objects of fear, 
 for a dog can worry the one, and a man armed with a 
 stick can kill the other. 
 
 It is generally believed that the jackal—called the 
 lion’s provider—goes, like a sportsman’s dog, before the 
 lion, to point out his prey. This is an erroneous suppo¬ 
 sition. The jackal and the hyena are among the ignoble 
 
THE LION AND OTHER ANIMALS. 293 
 
 beasts which follow—not precede the said. These 
 obsequious dependents keep at a respectful distance be¬ 
 hind, to feed on what their master leaves, after satisfying 
 his appetite by eating the best parts of what he has 
 
 killed. 
 
 The hyena and the jackal are voracious and repul¬ 
 sive creatures, but exist, as do all others, for a good 
 purpose. They devour the carcasses of animals which 
 have died a natural death, and as these would not be 
 •eaten by other wild beasts, the remains, if left to rot, 
 would infect the air and produce disease. 
 
294 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 BATNA TO THE COL DE SEA. 
 
 Where temples stood, the tamarinds grow ; 
 
 Broken columns are mouldering below. 
 
 No steps are heard in the ruined hall. 
 
 Such is man’s pride, and such its fall.— Anonymous. 
 
 I found myself suddenly transported to a wide and desolate plain, where 
 nothing appeared to breathe, or move, or live ; and had that whole region 
 been the remains of some older world, left broken up, it could not have 
 presented an aspect more quenched and desolate .—The Epicurean. 
 
 The vicinity of Batna to the forets des Cedres, calling- 
 to mind the wild animals of the North African forests, 
 we dedicated the whole of the last chapter and a part of 
 the one which preceded ‘it to hunting adventures—the 
 lion’s share having been accorded to him in our narra¬ 
 tive—adding to our descriptions some information on 
 the zoology of Algeria. We now proceed to visit 
 Lambessa. 
 
 The ruins of the old Roman city are only half an 
 hour’s drive from Batna, and a more interesting and 
 suggestive theme for reflection is not often to be met 
 with at so short a distance from a populous town. In 
 the open country, still standing, are the temples, arches, 
 
BATNA TO THE COL DE SEA . 
 
 295 
 
 and gates, which were erected nearly two thousand 
 
 What a rich and exhaustless field is here offered to 
 the research of those who, possessing the necessary taste 
 and learning, are disposed to examine its treasures. 
 Inscriptions, which date back to the time of the Roman, 
 Arab, Spanish, and Turkish occupations, are as litt c 
 difficult to find as they are easy to decipher. 
 
 A French savant, M. Charles F< 5 raud, in an eloquent 
 discourse on the ancient cities of Algeria, remarked, 
 ‘that before the year 1830, when the French first set 
 foot in Algeria, Northern Africa was little known in 
 Europe.’ ‘Only a few learned men,’ proceeds the 
 distinguished lecturer, ‘ had gleaned some knowledge o 
 it from the old historians. Of the Lybian period peop e 
 were in general very ignorant, and vague notions pre¬ 
 vailed of the time of the Romans, the invasion of the 
 Vandals, and the Byzantine restoration. As to the 
 centuries during which the Arab and Berber dynasties 
 remned, and of the Turkish dominion, although so 
 recent, ’ history was full of strange inaccuracies, and 
 passed over intervals about which no information was 
 
 given.’ 
 
 After a long and highly instructive dissertation on 
 the subject, M. Feraud, coming to speak of Lambessa, 
 says ‘ it was once a place of 60,000 inhabitants. In those 
 days, near this town was another called Marcouna, yet 
 
 more opulent than its neighbour.’ 
 
 It would occupy too much space were we to follow 
 the learned archeologist in his enumerations and descrip¬ 
 tions of the treasures of art which have been found 
 amongst these venerable ruins ; properly to appreciate 
 
296 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 the value of what had been disinterred, we must ourselves 
 visit this open air museum. Temples dedicated to 
 Victory, Esculapius, Minerva, Apollo, all specimens of 
 the purest style of architecture, have been cleared from 
 the rubbish ; mosaics rich in colour and various in design 
 still pave the floors, over which there is now no other roof 
 but the blue vault of heaven, whilst beautiful statues 
 which seem just to have left the hand of the sculptor 
 
 people this great edifice, which was probably the ancient 
 Prsetorium. 
 
 ‘ When these masterpieces of art were first brought 
 to light, one surprise succeeded another. Here were 
 found marble baths; classical fountains adorned with 
 bas-reliefs; porticoes whose thresholds still bore the 
 tiaces of chariot wheels; tombs containing gems, 
 jewellery, and lachrymatory vessels, lamps and other 
 funeral emblems ; besides great quantities of the rarest 
 and most authentic medals. 
 
 A monument which stood on an eminence attracted 
 the attention of the explorers, who uncovered it with 
 gieat caie, when an epitaph led to the discovery that it 
 was the burialplace of a certain Flavius, who com¬ 
 manded the third Roman legion garrisoned at Rambessa j 
 a volume,’ says M. Feraud, ‘would be insufficient to 
 contain a catalogue of the inscriptions gathered here and 
 in the enviions. It is by religiously collecting these 
 pages of history, which the ancients have cut on stone, 
 that we are enabled to read and understand the past 
 events of a country. These records relate to subjects of 
 the most varied kind, and treat of all that is associated 
 with, or that can enlighten us as to the social state, 
 manners, customs of the people, and the policy of the 
 Roman Government. 
 
BATNA TO THE COL DE SEA. 
 
 297 
 
 ‘Amongst other interesting objects is a hemicycle 
 formed of stones : it ornaments a large hall, which in 
 the present day we should call a club-room ; the members 
 who composed the society had their names inscribed on 
 tablets; some of them have been effaced ; they were 
 doubtless those of individuals who had rendeied them 
 selves unworthy to take their place with the rest. One 
 of the inscriptions found at Lambessa relates the adven¬ 
 tures of a Roman soldier who, having been sent to 
 Saldce (Bougie) to assist in repairing the aqueduct 
 which brought the water to that town, fell into the 
 hands of native highwaymen who stripped and lobbed 
 
 him.’ 
 
 Returning from Lambessa, we started the next 
 morning on our way to Biskra. After Batna, the 
 traveller going to the Sahara must bepiepaied to lough 
 it.’ Between Constantine and the latter town we had 
 found the road tolerable, but from the first hour after we 
 left Batna, all traces of a regular track disappeared. 
 
 We were seated in a little nondescript kind of gig 
 without springs, for no such accessories to the comfort 
 of locomotion could stand the jogging and jolting of the 
 pathless way we travelled over: sometimes we swerved to 
 the right, then veered to the left, as the ruts or impedi¬ 
 ments obliged us to leave the straight line. We forded 
 the Oued Branis several times, for its circuitous course, 
 and perhaps our deviation from the direct point of the 
 compass to which we were steering like the tacking of 
 a ship when the wind is against het made this unavoid¬ 
 able. The rain which fell during the storm we encounter¬ 
 ed between Constantine and Batna had swollen the river 
 so much, that the water often entered into our rickety 
 conveyance, and more than once we were compelled to 
 
 
2g8 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 go cross-country on foot, it being considered dangerous to 
 attempt to pass the stream in the carriage when too 
 heavily laden. 
 
 As we proceeded habitations became rare ; from time 
 to time we saw an isolated hut or caravansary, and here 
 and there on the low ground a solitary tree, or some 
 bushes with locusts swarming about them ; thus it con¬ 
 tinued till we arrived at El Kantara, a small oasis—the 
 first we had seen. It is situated directly in face of one 
 of the most striking and picturesque defiles in Algeria, 
 called by the Arabs—very appropriately—Foumes- 
 Sahara, the mouth of the desert, for here the mountains 
 which separate the Tell from the Sahara appear to have 
 been split asunder to allow the Oued Branis a narrow 
 passage. Precipitous and bare rocks rise to an immense 
 height above this rent in the stupendous wall which di¬ 
 vides these very different regions. 
 
 According to a local tradition the original inhabitants 
 of El Kantara were a Roman colony converted to Is- 
 lamism ; some ruins and inscriptions are supposed to 
 confirm this assumption. 
 
 Already accustomed to the arid approach to the 
 desert, when we emerged from this beautiful pass we 
 were as much astonished and enchanted with the sudden 
 transformation of the solitary and stony road we had 
 travelled over into a charming palm-grown oasis, as we 
 were with the imposing gate which opens to the 
 Sahara. 
 
 After this verdant spot the aspect of the country is 
 wild, barren, mountainous, and rocky, unlike the level 
 sandy surface we had anticipated, a phenomenon which 
 is not met with North of Biskra. The desert was so 
 
BATNA TO THE COL DE SEA. 299 
 
 associated in our mind with sand and flatness that this 
 beginning greatly astonished, if it did not disappoint us 
 yet the prospect on every side was singular and striking,, 
 for we had seen nothing before which resembled it. 
 
 Far and near rose salt hills, whilst in the distance red- 
 coloured mountains presented fantastic forms, theii tops 
 often appearing like fortified heights, with bastions, as it 
 built by the hand of man, round their sides. The ground 
 was everywhere covered with a rough, unequal layer of 
 stones and shells mixed with sand. Vegetation there 
 was none, except a few tufts of tamarind or of wild thyme 
 we saw spotted about; animal life also seemed to be ex¬ 
 tinguished, although we noticed traces of some passing 
 
 antelopes. 
 
 A profound stillness, which made the nakedness of 
 the land more perceptible, reigned over this somewhat 
 lugubrious landscape. The desolate tract was from time 
 to time relieved by our meeting a small party of Arabs,, 
 with their wives and little ones riding on dromedaries, 
 the women sitting in gaily-coloured tents on the backs 
 of the docile animals, the men mounted on mules and 
 horses, or walking near their wives. We were always, 
 glad when these children of the desert came in sight 
 
 Interesting at all times, groups of camels are particu¬ 
 larly so when marching through the Sahara, with which 
 we are accustomed to associate them. As they appealed 
 to us, they served to illustrate a remark we have made 
 before, that the same object is very different under differ¬ 
 ent circumstances. To make the picture pleasing, all 
 must be in harmony. The lion, with his pioud and 
 dauntless bearing seen on the plain or in the foiest, the 
 bird in the air, and the camel in the desert, are very 
 
3 00 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 unlike those in confinement, where they have little about 
 them which we connect with their nature and habits. 
 Speaking of the camel, when far off, grazing on some bit 
 of accidental vegetation, it resembles the ostrich, for long 
 legs and neck, a small head, and grey or tawny colour, 
 are common to both ; thus we often mistook one for the 
 other until we came nearer. 
 
30i 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 
 OASIS OF BISKRA. 
 
 Qui, a breve dir, in bell’ ordin racoolti 
 I miracoli in un della Natura, 
 
 Che in mille foggie ti rapisce e bea 
 E del suo Facitor alti-possente 
 L’idea piu grande ti ridesta in core, 
 
 Festosi e lieti ti verranno incontro 
 Per esser vezzeggiati da’ tuoi lumi, 
 
 Ed eternarsi nella tua memoria.—A lgaroti. 
 
 Source limpide et murmurante 
 
 . 
 
 Tu parais ! le desert s’anime !—Lamartine. 
 
 LEAVING the dreary waste behind, an ascent through a 
 barren defile brought us to the summit of the Col de Sfa, 
 an eminence overlooking the promised land. 
 
 Embracing at one rapturous glance a view which we 
 could have passed hours in contemplating, we stopped 
 as if fascinated by the sudden apparition of the Saharian 
 
 scene below us. 
 
 The effect heightened by contrast, we saw the beau¬ 
 tiful oasis of Biskra with its groves of palm-trees, their 
 dark and graceful forms standing before the vast expanse 
 of the desert, which stretches far away on the Southern 
 
302 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 horizon—boundless as the ocean—a sea of sand, in which 
 small oases that look like islets break the uniformity of 
 the apparent water. The illusion was perfect even to the 
 appearance of blue waves rippling on the imaginary 
 shore. 
 
 He who has seen neither the desert nor the sea 
 can form no conception of extent and distance, as they 
 are displayed in these wonderful features of creation. 
 
 When we reached the Col de Sfa, the mountains of 
 the Atlas range seemed penetrated by the fiery rays of 
 the descending sun. Impregnated with light and colour 
 they shone like transparent rubies, whilst the plain below 
 was dyed in the deep purple with which nature paints 
 the landscape at close of day, and far over the Sahara 
 the evening sky, blending its blue grey into green and 
 gold crossed with streaks of red, acquired brightness and 
 depth as it became suffused with the warmth of the 
 setting sun. It was like a vision of fairy land, an en¬ 
 chanted region, an artist’s dream, a poet’s conception. 
 Fine sunsets we have in the North, but more intense 
 and brilliant is the splendour which accompanies the 
 descent of the luminary as it slowly disappears in all the 
 effulgence of its glory in Southern climes. 
 
 Before we saw this effect of light from the Col de Sfa 
 we did not know how true were the glowing pictures we 
 had seen of the far East; we had thought them too 
 highly coloured, till we saw the sun go down over the 
 African desert. 
 
 Biskra, which maybe called New Biskra, to distinguish 
 it from the original Arab village about a mile from it, is 
 a pretty little town which has sprung up under the 
 .auspices of the military. It has some tolerable streets, 
 
OASIS OF BISKRA. 
 
 3°3 
 
 small squares, and houses built on arcades an excellent 
 protection against burning heat in summer—besides 
 shops, cafes, a public garden, and a promenade ; but the 
 pleasantest walk is along the banks of the river, which 
 flows through groves of palm-trees, with clusters of dates 
 hanging from their branches. Many of the Arabs, 
 appreciating the advantages which the modern town 
 possesses over the mud-built capital of the Ziban, 01 
 finding it their interest to live amongst Europeans, have 
 abandoned their former quarters, and their numbers now 
 greatly predominate in Biskra pioper. 
 
 The greatest ornament of Biskra is that which is at 
 the same time the chief source of its prosperity, 200,000 
 palms ; a very forest of fruit trees, producing delicious 
 dates, delicacies at our dessert, and the principal food of 
 the natives. There are scarcely any other trees except 
 olives, and a few pomegranates. This want of variety 
 must, after a time, weary the eye accustomed to diversity 
 in this beautiful feature of vegetation. We found the 
 dates sold in Algiers much better than those at Biskra, 
 the best being chosen for exportation, a policy and 
 custom not confined to the oases, for many of the ai tides 
 which are sent from one country to another, and even 
 from one to another part of the same country, are the 
 most excellent that can be selected. The shipments 
 from Algeria form an exception to the rule, the gieatei 
 part of what is taken away being spoiled when it is 
 
 conveyed to a distance. 
 
 Living, at the only hotel, is rather expensive in Biskra, 
 as much that is consumed comes from Batna and other 
 places ; people in general, unlike our friend the bankei at 
 
304 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 Constantine, not being satisfied to vegetate on a date in 
 the wilderness. 
 
 There is here a particular class of women, the Almees, 
 of the tribe of the Oled Nails, who may be called one of 
 the sights, if not one of the attractions, of Biskra. They 
 come from near Bousaada, and are most of them dancing 
 girls, more remarkable for the graces of their persons and 
 the singularity of their costume than for the purity of 
 their morals. Their complexions are darker than gipsies, 
 for they daub their faces with tar and saffron to deepen 
 the colouring of the African sun ! They are fond of gaily 
 coloured dresses, tatoo themselves like savages, and wear 
 earrings as large as small hoops. Their hair, being mixed 
 with wool and plastered with grease, forms a mass about 
 the head which rivals the false locks of fashionable ladies, 
 only the raven tresses of the Almees are worn differently, 
 for they fall over the ears, and enclose the face as if it 
 were framed in ebony. They literally cover their persons 
 with gold and silver coin, coral, and other ornaments, often 
 carrying about them a small fortune in jewellery, which 
 they display as proudly as if it had been virtuously ac¬ 
 quired. 
 
 These women, who live apart in one of the quarters of 
 the town, frequent the cafes Maures at night, where they 
 dance a kind of bolero, but the performance of the Saha- 
 rian girls is more unrestrained than that of the Spaniards. 
 After a few years they return to their native oasis, and a 
 marriage almost invariably follows this licentious episode 
 in their lives. 
 
 In large cities all the world over, in spite of civilisation, 
 or perhaps in consequence of it, a certain class of society 
 follow the same course and, except the good dancing and 
 bad music, amuse themselves much in the same way; 
 
' OASIS OF BISKRA. 
 
 3°5 
 
 but we did not expect to find the social evil amongst the 
 daughters of the desert in the quiet and distant oasis. 
 
 Old Biskra is well worth a visit. The ruins of the 
 Arab village—built entirely of mud hardened in the 
 
 sun_so much resemble the ground in colour that they 
 
 seem to have grown like fungi out of their original 
 earth. 
 
 The ruins we are accustomed to see are magnificent 
 even in decay; but at old Biskra the bare walls of the 
 houses, their vacant courts, the broken arches, and the 
 ancient fort—overlooking the broad and silent Sahara— 
 make a better picture of desolation and solitude than the 
 proud remains of a grand city. 
 
 In the neighbourhood of Biskra—about five miles 
 0 ff_ are the hot sulphureous springs of Sala-Hin, which 
 are in great repute, or rather they are held in veneration, 
 by the people of the Ziban. This source throws up its 
 waters in a wild out-of-the-way spot, to which there is 
 no road. It is seldom visited, except by the Arabs, who 
 come from far and near to wash in the beneficent fount. 
 The temperature of this bath is not less than 114 0 
 Fahrenheit; but, as there is some superstition attached 
 to it, the Arabs, men and women, plunge in and parboil 
 themselves in holy water which no European skin could 
 stand for an instant. 
 
 The mineral springs of Algeria are neither so well 
 known nor so well appreciated as they deserve to be, 
 and as they were at the time of the Romans; for 
 curative properties they are scarcely equalled in the 
 world. 
 
 Enclosed in the vegetation they make for themselves, 
 what a contrast do these bubbling sources form to the 
 
 x 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 306 
 
 surrounding desert! Like virtue in the midst of vice 
 —untainted by the impurities about it—these crystal 
 waters rise and flow unsullied by the sand of the 
 Sahara. 
 
 It is impossible to consider the efficacy of these 
 health-bestowing springs without feeling grateful to 
 Almighty Providence, which has caused the earth to 
 send forth gushing waters pre-endowed, like the water 
 of Jordan, with qualities suited to relieve many of the 
 maladies with which suffering humanity is afflicted. 
 
3°7 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV. 
 
 THE SAHARA. 
 
 Si tu savais les secrets du desert, tu penserais comme moi ; 
 
 Mais tu ignores, et 1’ignorance est la mere du mal. 
 
 Si tu t’etais eveille au milieu du Sahara, 
 
 - Si tes pieds avaient foule ce tapis de sable, 
 
 Parseme de fleurs semblables a des perles, 
 
 Tu aurais admire nos plantes, 
 
 L’etrange variete de leurs teintes, 
 
 Leur grace, leur parfum delicieux ; 
 
 Tu aurais respire ce souffle embaume cpii double la vie, cai il n a pas 
 passe sur l’impurete des villes.—L’E mir Abd-el-Kader. 
 
 Dov’ e la nostra Patria ? 
 
 Dove liberi sono 
 I nostri passi, e il tuono 
 Muggisce in liberta, 
 
 E dove il vento e libero : 
 
 La nostra Patria e la.— Ottolini. 
 
 LOOKING Southward we see dark spots, which are 
 oases dotted about the sandy plain. Some of these are 
 interesting to visit, such as Sidi Okbar, foui leagues fiom 
 Biskra. 
 
 Those who are disposed to penetrate farther into this 
 terra incognita can extend their ride to Tougourt, one of 
 the most Southern of the Algerian oases. The Sahaia 
 was once a sea and, where we now travel on camels by 
 land, was then navigable water—and may be again- 
 
 X 2 
 
3°S 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 Tougourt is a four days’ journey from Biskra. As there is 
 no inn, travellers are lodged at the Cai'd’s. Now lodging 
 at a Cai'd’s is perhaps the most hazardous step taken in 
 the desert. We heard a landscape painter at Biskra 
 relate his adventures at Tougourt to some French 
 officers, ending by a description of his sojourn at the 
 Ca'fd’s. Many compliments were paid the artist on his 
 enthusiasm for art and the toughness of his skin, for the 
 battalion to which the military gentlemen belonged had 
 been quartered at Tougourt. On arriving they also 
 stopped at the Cai'd’s, but at midnight were obliged 
 to beat an ignominious retreat, for—as they expressed 
 it—no hide but an Arab’s, or that of a rhinoceros, could 
 withstand the army of fleas, bugs, and another little pet 
 insect, besides a few scorpions, which assailed them. The 
 rest of the night was passed a la belle etoile , and the 
 succeeding ones under cover of their tents. 
 
 We also wished to see the desert, so we engaged 
 camels, and rode southwards; not to visit other Arab 
 tribes—the inhabitants of the Sahara 30 '—nor to admire 
 palm-trees growing on other oases; but, like the man 
 who leaves port only to look upon the blue water and 
 the vast extent of the sea, we cared to see nothing but 
 the desert, and to experience only the sensations this 
 ocean of sand might inspire. 
 
 The motion of the camel is not very agreeable at 
 first, but we soon become accustomed to its long steps 
 and undulatory movements. When we got out of sight 
 of terra jirma —for moving sand can scarcely be called 
 steady ground—we found ourselves in a strange region ; 
 a few low hills alone broke the monotony of the sandy 
 expanse. As we advanced the country became entirely 
 flat, with clouds of dust blowing over it, which made our 
 
THE SAHARA. 
 
 309 
 
 guides draw the drapery of their burnous over their 
 mouths, as Arabs always do during a sirocco, even when 
 in town. Continuing our route we passed some camei 
 bones burned white in the sun. Sand, level, yellow-grey 
 ground below, the sun and blue sky above, endless space 
 —space before and behind, space to the right and to the 
 left—all around far as the eye could reach, made up the 
 scene : we perceived no trace of vegetation 01 of w ater, foi 
 we were near no oasis. Of man or beast we saw nothing, 
 
 < ni rey ni roque ,’ it was like being at sea sailing on the 
 trackless ocean. When we set out we wished to form a 
 conception of real solitude, here it was almost a feeling. 
 The farther South we proceeded the more uniform 
 
 became the prospect. 
 
 At some seasons the serpents a come, whose bite is 
 fatal, are met with in the Sahara ; but they are fortu¬ 
 nately now scarcely ever seen near Liskia. A story is 
 told of an Englishman who, wishing to protect his legs 
 against these reptiles, provided himself with tin boots 
 before entering the desert on the Laghouat side , a pair 
 is shown to travellers, but it does not appear very clear 
 whether the Englishman left them, or whether the boots 
 
 are all that is left of the Englishman ! 
 
 Gazelles may often be seen in this part of the Sahara, 
 but we saw neither these graceful animals nor the 
 ostrich, which does not often wander so far North. This 
 singular bird, which is as celebrated for the beauty of its 
 feathers as it is distinguished for its wonderful swiftness, 
 is not only the largest bird—except the condor—but is 
 the greatest glutton of its species. It devours vipers, 
 serpents, scorpions, and other venomous reptiles, and 
 insects; and the Arabs affirm that it eats stones and 
 iron ; and, if left in its way, it will gobble up knives, 
 
3io 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 forks, coral-necklaces, spoons ; and, like a true African, 
 it has also a taste for jewellery, coins, and other shining 
 articles. 
 
 It is found in great numbers in the South of Algeria, 
 particularly on the extensive table-land between Lag- 
 houat and Beni-Mzab. 
 
 Having spoken of the ostrich, we shall conclude our 
 excursion by describing how it is hunted. 
 
 ‘ The most favourable time for this sport,’ says 
 General Daumas, ‘ is during the hottest days of summer. 
 The higher the temperature, the less strength the bird 
 has to defend itself. 
 
 ‘ In a hunt of this kind preparations must be made 
 for a somewhat distant expedition, one which may last 
 a week or ten days. Some dozen mounted Arabs 
 usually take part in the chase. Each rider is accom¬ 
 panied by a servant on a camel carrying provender for 
 the horses, provisions for the men, and water for both, 
 besides some simple cooking apparatus. 
 
 ‘ In the Sahara the ostrich is generally found where 
 grass has sprung up in consequence of recent rain. The 
 Arabs say that as soon as it sees lightning, and observes 
 other indications of threatening weather, it runs towards 
 the quarter where the storm is likely to burst, taught by 
 instinct that vegetation follows almost immediately. 
 
 ‘Having first ascertained from travellers, caravans,, 
 or from messengers who have been sent before for the 
 purpose, that there are many of these birds at a parti¬ 
 cular place, the party set out very early, for they some¬ 
 times require two or three days to reach the spot where 
 the ostriches have been seen ; here the hunters halt and 
 bivouac. The next morning two of the most intelligent 
 
THE SAHARA. 
 
 in 
 
 attendants go to reconnoitre ; they are entirely naked 
 except a cloth round the waist. As soon as they per¬ 
 ceive the game they lie down and watch theii move¬ 
 ments, after which one of the men returns with the news. 
 Sometimes he has to report as many as fifty or sixty ; 
 on other occasions only a few couples are met with. The 
 company, led by the servant who has given the informa¬ 
 tion, walk quietly on to where the birds are assembled. 
 The nearer the Arabs approach, the greater are the pie- 
 cautions they take not to be observed. They now look 
 out for some rock or inequality in the ground, where 
 they can conceal themselves. The cavaliers form a wide 
 circle round the ostriches, but so far off that they cannot 
 be perceived. The attendants, as soon as the riders 
 have taken up their positions, walk straight forward to 
 the centre of the ring, on which the birds run away 
 affrighted. In trying to escape they come upon the men 
 on horseback, who at first only drive them back. The 
 ostriches, in running backwards and forwards, begin to 
 exhaust their strength. Again and again they tiy to 
 escape from the enclosure into which they are always 
 driven. When they show signs of lassitude the hunts¬ 
 men narrow the fatal circle; the game, becoming more 
 fatigued, open their wings, which is a proof of the 
 greatest prostration. The Arabs, now sure of their prey, 
 draw in the horses. Each chooses a particular bird at 
 which he rides, and strikes it a heavy blow with the 
 stick. The head, being bald, is very sensitive ; so that 
 
 the ostrich, when struck, falls to the ground. 
 
 So tired are they when on the point of being ovei- 
 taken, that those the huntsmen do not wish to kill may 
 easily be caught alive, for they can scarcely walk. 
 
312 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 
 THE FUTURE OF ALGERIA. 
 
 (Seiji nur tie tfugen jietten unS tie ©egenftanbe bar. 
 
 Anonymous. 
 
 Before concluding we shall say a few words on the 
 future prospects of Algeria. 
 
 To make the passage to Algiers shorter and more 
 agreeable, it is proposed that, in addition to the steamers 
 which leave Marseilles, others should sail from Port 
 Vendres, near the Spanish frontier, with which place 
 there is communication by rail from all parts of France. 
 
 Taking Port Vendres as a starting point, the voyage 
 would not only be less in duration, but, what is of 
 greater consequence, the dreaded Gulf of Lyons would 
 be avoided, a desideratum for invalids and for all who 
 suffer from sea-sickness. 
 
 We are unable to form an opinion as to the probable 
 success of the project in a commercial point of view, but 
 this has been well considered, and it is believed the result 
 would be satisfactory. 
 
 A yet shorter run over from Europe, is to cross from 
 Carthagena, in the South of Spain, to Oran, from which 
 town there is a railway direct to Algiers. 
 
THE FUTURE OF ALGERIA. 3 J 3 
 
 When the political events which now distract the 
 Peninsula are settled, faster boats will be put on, after 
 which the distance, about 120 miles, could be acconr- 
 
 plished in eight or ten hours. 
 
 It is designed to lay down several new railways, and 
 others are begun, which will connect many places with 
 each other, very interesting to travellers, but that are 
 now difficult of access. The most necessary of these is 
 one between Algiers and Constantine, by way of Setif. 
 A portion of it is in progress, but it has not yet been 
 decided whether the line shall pass through the famous 
 gorge called the Iron Gate, or make a detour southwards 
 
 •o o 
 
 in the direction of Msila. 
 
 A railway is to be made from Affreville a station 
 on the way to Oran—to Boghari, by the valley of the 
 Cheliff. 
 
 Boghari is a borough on the table-land of the Tell, 
 near the lesser Sahara ; the great Sahara or deseit being 
 120 miles farther south. 
 
 Produce coming from the haut-plateaux, the oasis of 
 Laghouat and others, which have the interior as far as 
 Soudan for a background, passes through Boghari. 
 
 Two lines are to be constructed from the littoral to 
 the Sahara ; one of these, which is to go from Arzew to 
 Saida, traversing the district of Mascara, is to be laid 
 down immediately. The other is to run fiom Mostaga- 
 nem to Tiaret by the vale of the Mina. We passed 
 through the former town in our first excursion, as the 
 
 reader will remember. 
 
 The productive regions of the high table-lands are 
 rich in grain, oil, forage, &c. Above all, that invaluable 
 plant, now well known under the Aiab name of alfa, 
 
3H 
 
 ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 grows here in profusion ; and increased facilities for its 
 exportation would tend greatly to the prosperity of 
 Algeria. 
 
 Alfa, which belongs to the gramineous genera of 
 plants, being found in abundance all over the colony—■ 
 in the Sahara, on the Tell, and near the coast—may 
 become as valuable to it as cotton is to the United 
 States of America. It is used in making hats, cords, 
 baskets, matting, paper, and is employed in the manu¬ 
 facture of many other articles. 
 
 In the province of Constantine an iron road is to £o 
 from Bougie to Setif, and another from Bone to Guelma 
 and Tebessa on the Tunisian border, passing through 
 Ain Bei'da ; but the boldest of these railway projects is 
 to construct a line from Tebessa to Tlemcen, which will 
 traverse the whole of Algeria, running parallel with the 
 lange of the Atlas mountains, thus uniting the Tunisian 
 with the Marocco frontier. 
 
 The grandest conception of all is to form an inland 
 sea ; an enterprise worthy of a nation which has joined 
 two at a great distance from each other. 
 
 This gigantic undertaking is to be carried out in 
 the legion of the lakes, or chotts y which lie to the south 
 of Algeria, near the Eastern Sahara. The ground is 
 here lower than the level of the Mediterranean, the 
 depression varying from thirty to fifty yards, which was 
 once filled by water from the ocean. To make a sea in 
 these desert latitudes it would be sufficient to dig a 
 canal of no very considerable length from the Gulf of 
 Gabes to the nearest of the Eastern lakes. The country 
 to the south of Biskra, where they are situated, forms a 
 succession of sinks or cavities, generally dry; they are 
 
THE FUTURE OF ALGERIA. 
 
 what the French call has fonds. This unequally de¬ 
 pressed land, varies from twenty to sixty miles m 
 breadth, and extends west to east to a distance of about 
 350, from lake Mel-Khir on the meridian of Biskra to 
 the'shott Faroun, separated from the Gulf of Gabes only 
 by downs composed of small sand hills. 
 
 The material advantages which must accrue from the 
 execution of this design would be the formation of sea¬ 
 ports, not farther than eighty miles from Biskra, by which 
 commerce with many parts of the interior would be 
 greatly facilitated. Nomad tribes, such as the Touaregs, 
 who at present monopolise the trade with Central Afiica, 
 and are now obliged to take the long routes by way of 
 Marocco, Tunis, and Tripoli, would come to the new ports 
 to sell what they bring from Soudan, and other places 
 beyond the Great Desen. 
 
 It might be a costly undertaking ; but, if carried out 
 successfully, the result would be commensurate with the 
 outlay of capital. 
 
 A sea flowing through these sandy and banen legions 
 could not .fail to modify the climate by cooling the 
 temperature, for so much water would cause more rain to 
 fall and fertilise the vast extent of land which, now arid 
 through drought, is lost to cultivation. What life and 
 business might not then enliven this distant part of 
 Algeria, where no sound disturbs the stillness of the 
 
 solitude ! 
 
 Those who take a sanguine view of the future see 
 ports, docks, towns, ships, and steamers along the new 
 shores. After these must follow agricultural emigiation, 
 with all the benefits it brings in its train. In a word, 
 
ALGERIA AS IT IS. 
 
 316 
 
 where civilisation carries its blessings, what may we not 
 hope to see, even in this waste of sand and sirocco ? 
 
 In the chapter on climate we have said that the 
 weather in Algiers, and on the whole coast, is neither too 
 warm nor too cold from November to May. It is both 
 warmer, more uniform, and less damp at that season, 
 than it is in the South of Italy, and less rain falls than 
 in Sicily. Some invalids however require a higher 
 temperature, such as is to be found at Madeira. For 
 these Algeria has in reserve a climate, where they can 
 meet with what they desire, without going so far as to 
 that meridional island. We allude to the charminer 
 
 o 
 
 oasis of Biskra, where it is proposed to establish a winter 
 station. 
 
 Medical men, notwithstanding that they seldom agree 
 on any point, admit that Biskra possesses all the climatic 
 advantages that nature can unite in one delectable spot; 
 being milder and more equal in winter than in the places 
 first mentioned, it is better suited for people suffering 
 from maladies of the chest, bronchitis, &c., and for all 
 who are in delicate health. The natural beauties of 
 Biskra are such that it would deserve to be called an 
 oasis even if it were not in a desert. 
 
 But to return to ‘ Algeria as it is.’ 
 
 Such, as we have attempted to describe it, is Algeria, 
 with its matchless climate, its gigantic and ever-verdant 
 vegetation, its lofty mountains, broad plateaux, and 
 smiling valleys, its dark and silent forests, sandy Sahara, 
 and fertile oases ; the wild and picturesque life of the 
 natives, and the comforts of civilisation; ‘ a pays de 
 cocagne/ a land of plenty, which nature has blessed with 
 the best she has to bestow, a part of Africa which a few 
 
THE FUTURE OF ALGERIA. 
 
 3i7 
 
 years ago was almost as little known as is still the 
 untrodden interior of this vast continent. 
 
 In a word, what has been justly remarked of Italy 
 may be said of this delightful and interesting country: 
 
 ‘ he who has been there once, yet feels no desire to return,, 
 does not deserve to have been there at all. 
 
 In concluding, we thank indulgent readers and re¬ 
 viewers, whilst we remind fastidious critics that 'tabeht 
 famt rcof)f Sebet; int 9 Beffermad)m ftedt bie dtunft/ 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ' 
 
 
 
 
 
NOTES. 
 
 Note i, page vii- 
 
 In writing this historical notice we have been indebted to the kindness 
 of M. le Directeur of the museum in Algiers, for allowing us access to 
 works on ancient and modern history, as well as other books of lefeience, 
 which have greatly facilitated us in its composition. 
 
 We have also occasionally followed M. Berard, in whose pages his¬ 
 torical subjects become interesting as well as instructive. 
 
 Note 2, page i. 
 
 Scanty headings to the chapters. To know each paragraph before 
 reading the book, diminishes the interest in the subject; the author 
 has therefore not placed the usual summary of contents at the head of the 
 chapters. Those who wish to ascertain what is coming will find a resume at 
 the beginning of the volume, where it is given as matter useful for reference. 
 
 Note page io. 
 
 The promontory alluded to is Sidi Ferruch, where the French landed in 
 1S30. It is about nineteen miles west of Algiers. 
 
 Note 4, page 18. 
 
 Le jardin d’acclimatation. In this beautiful garden more than six thousand 
 ■different kinds of trees and plants from distant parts of the globe are to be 
 seen, flourishing in the congenial climate to which they have been trans¬ 
 planted. 
 
 Note 5 ,page 20. 
 
 These few words on Tunis are from a very practical and useful little 
 hand-book, ‘ Guide en Algerie et en Tunisie,’ published by M. Juillet 
 Saint Lager, in Algiers. 
 
320 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 Note 6, page 29. 
 
 Although there is the distinction pointed out between Kabyles, Arabs, 
 and Moors, they are sometimes—when speaking of the native inhabitants 
 collectively—called Arabs ; and, to avoid repetition, we shall so designate 
 them where the difference is immaterial. 
 
 Note 7, page 31. 
 
 Coffee. The Arabs pound their coffee in a mortar as fine as flour ; this 
 is more economical than grinding it, a smaller quantity being required when 
 it is prepared in this way. Where the same quality and quantity is used, 
 the pounded coffee has a finer flavour than that which is ground. 
 
 Notwithstanding the prevailing impression to the contrary, the Arabs 
 sweeten their coffee as we do. 
 
 Note 8, page 33. 
 
 Barbarossa. The real name of this notorious pirate was Baba-Aroudj. 
 
 Note 9, page 54. 
 
 Moorish ladies at home. Although gentlemen do not meet with better 
 opportunities than the one mentioned, their wives are sometimes introduced 
 into Moorish families. This privilege has assisted the author in describing 
 the costume. 
 
 Note io, page 67. 
 
 Verse from the Vulgate or Latin translation of the Bible. The reader 
 who may look for this verse in our translation of the Bible will find that 
 there is so great a difference between the Latin and the English version 
 that almost all resemblance between them is lost ; the latter rendering is 
 no doubt more like the Hebrew, but the words of the Prophet as given in 
 the Vulgate are certainly in accordance with the goodness and mercy of the 
 Almighty. 
 
 Note 11, page 68. 
 
 These remarks on insurrections in Algeria are by M. Achille Fillias. 
 
 Note 12, page 78. 
 
 The greater part, &c. ‘ Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the 
 
 way, which leadeth into life, and fau there be that find it. ’ —St. Matthew, 
 
 vii. 14. 
 
NOTES. 
 
 3 2r 
 
 Note 13, page 7 8. 
 
 ‘ Dealing damnation round the land.’ We remind these Pharisees that 
 the salvation they deem impossible is possible with God. Apparent con¬ 
 tradiction is reconciled by the words of our Saviour. —St. Matthew, 
 .xix. 23-26. 
 
 Note 14, page 80. 
 
 The Crescent. We make this correction on the authority of M. C. 
 Feraud, a distinguished archeologist, who alluded to the subject in a recent 
 lecture to the officers of the French army in Algeria. 
 
 Note 15, page 161. 
 
 Invitation. If the reader, when travelling in Austria, where he will 
 slot fail to visit the picturesquely situated town of Salzburg, will call upon 
 the author (Villa Gaskell, Monchsberg, easily recognised by the English 
 flag), he will have great pleasure in showing his countryman the view 
 .spoken of in the text. From the tower of Mr. Gaskell’s villa, the admirer 
 of grand scenery will see before him one of the most magnificent panoramas 
 in Europe—or in the world—in whose praise Algaroti wrote the Italian 
 poem from which the lines at the head of Chapters II. and XXXIV. are 
 taken. 
 
 Note 16, page 168. 
 
 Former advancement of the Arabs. The Arabs were at one period of 
 their history a learned, intelligent, and—compared with the rest of the 
 world at that epoch—a civilised people. They were skilled in the arts and 
 sciences, medicine, astronomy, &c.; were admirable architects, and under¬ 
 stood agriculture. Literature flourished ; many works remain which show 
 progress in geography, and their historical records are of value in the 
 present day. It is from them we have derived several scientific terms, such 
 as algebra, alkali, and others. Towards the close of the eighth century 
 the Arabs were in advance of contemporary nations. Some useful inven¬ 
 tions are also attributed to them; that of the clock is certainly due to the 
 Arabs. The celebrated Sultan Haroun-el-Raschid sent to the Emperor 
 Charlemagne a curious timepiece, which indicated the hour of noon by 
 twelve horsemen marching round the dial, not unlike the famous clock in 
 the St. Marco at Venice. 
 
 Note 1.7, page 171. 
 
 ‘ Xatura il fece, e poi ruppe la stampa. —Ariosto, Canto x. Stanza 84 
 
 Y 
 
3 22 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 This admirable idea has been taken without acknowledgment by two- 
 English writers. Byron ends a monody on Sheridan with the following 
 jingle 
 
 ‘ Sighing that Nature form’d but one such man, 
 
 And broke the die—in moulding Sheridan .’ 
 
 We know not which to admire more, the notion that Sheridan was the 
 most perfect man ever created, or the setting of Ariosto’s gem in such 
 paltry rhyme. For a poet so rich in pearls of thought as the author of 
 1 Childe Harold,’ a poet—although not fully appreciated in England- 
 second only to Shakespeare in the richest literature in the world, this is 
 surely an unworthy theft from a brother bard. The notes to the ‘ Monody ’ 
 are twice as long as the verses, yet none of the commentators have pointed 
 out the plagiarism. 
 
 The other literary purloiner is General Burgoyne who, after sending 
 home elegantly written despatches about his defeats in America, tried to 
 find on the steeps of Parnassus the laurels he did not gather on the field of 
 battle. In his comedy, ‘The Heiress,’ we find what follows. Act i. 
 scene ii. 
 
 ‘ He cannot mistake her, for when she was formed , nature broke the 
 mould. ’ 
 
 Note i8,page 174. 
 
 As we have seen in Chapter IX., speaking of the Blacks in Algeria,, 
 they were slaves before the conquest in 1830. 
 
 Note 19, / age 175. 
 
 Love at first sight is not unknown even amongst the unsusceptible 
 children of the North, but numerous examples of sudden and violent 
 passion are recorded by Arab writers. 
 
 Note 20, page 193. 
 
 ‘ Sultan of the desert.’ Although this fine title, amongst other royal 
 appellations, is given to the lion by the Arabs, it is not very applicable, for 
 his majesty is seldom seen in the desert, where he would find scanty food 
 and miss many things necessary to his habits. It must therefore be re¬ 
 garded as an honorary title, like those borne by potentates who have 
 dominions they rarely visit ! 
 
 Note 21, page 212. 
 
 ‘ May God blacken his face,’ is an Oriental imprecation applied, in par¬ 
 ticular, to traitors. It is a general belief of the Muslims that the wicked 
 
NOTES. 
 
 323 
 
 v.vill rise to judgment with their faces black ; hence the origin of the 
 curse.’—L ane. 
 
 Note 22, page 212. 
 
 Marriage between Christians and Muslims. ‘ Bon nombre de Musul - 
 mans Algeriens ont pris, pour se rendre a la Mecque, la route de Tanger. 
 Le but de ce voyage etait de presenter leur hommage au grand cherif Abd 
 Eslam, dont le mariage avec une Anglaise a eu un si long et si grand reten- 
 tissement .’—Moniteur de VAlgerie. 
 
 Note 23, page 213. 
 
 Tufts and tonsures. The tuft of hair on the crown of the head is left 
 to grow, in order that the Prophet may catch hold of it, and thus draw up 
 the faithful into paradise. 
 
 Roman Catholic priests, on the contrary, shave a round spot in the 
 .same place ; this is called the tonsure, and—although few of them are 
 aware of the fact—the custom originated with the Pagans, the ciiculai 
 space having represented the sun amongst the Persians and other fire- 
 worshippers. 
 
 Note 24, page 237. 
 
 At the trial before the Cour cl’Assises Si Said ben Ali, (Amin el 
 Oumena,) Hadj Ahmed ben Dahman Caicl of the Animals, and other chiefs 
 were condemned to death. 
 
 Note 25, page 249. 
 
 As the reader who visits Algeria will always hear the French names of 
 places, such as Kabylie, Bone—instead of Bona—Roumel, &c., we have 
 adopted them, for they soon become familiar by repetition. 
 
 Note 26 ,page 251. 
 
 Queen Kama. See Historical Notice, p. xv. 
 
 Note 27, page 260. 
 
 Ophthalmy, a disease very prevalent among the native inhabitants of 
 Algeria, is not so often caused by the sand/ of the desert, as by their own 
 imprudence in sleeping in the night dews, and basking in the sun by day. 
 
 Note 28, page 277. 
 
 Arab words. The reader is reminded that he will find the meaning of 
 Arab words in the list at the end of the volume. To avoid repetition in 
 
 Y 2 
 
324 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 speaking of the lion we have occasionally—like the Arabs—called him 
 ‘ said,’ and in one or two instances we have the Arabic name 4 sba.’ Fov 
 the same reason, the panther and the wild boar have once or twice received 
 their native appellations. 
 
 Note 29, page 288. 
 
 The panther. The remarks on the panther in this page are from the 
 French of M. Bechade, ‘ Chasse en Algerie.’ 
 
 Note s^ipsigc 308. 
 
 Inhabitants of the Sahara. Some readers may suppose that the only 
 people met with in the desert are the Nomad Arabs who pitch their tents- 
 there in winter, or the caravans which pass through. There are, however, 
 towns and villages on the oases scattered about this part of the Sahara. 
 
ARAB WORDS USED IN THE TEXT. 
 
 Abd, servant. 
 
 Abd Allah, servant of God. 
 
 Abd-el-Kader , servant of the Almighty. 
 
 Adjar, a kerchief which covers all the face except the eyes. 
 
 Ain, a fountain. 
 
 A min-el- Oumena, chief of several douars. 
 
 Amin-Ferkat, the chief of a part of a tribe. 
 
 Amin, chief of a village. 
 
 Azib, an enclosure where animals are kept. 
 
 Bab, a door or gate. 
 
 B \ 
 
 Beni, sons. 
 
 Bordj, a fort. 
 
 Caul, a chief of several douars. 
 
 Casbah, a fortress, a stronghold. 
 
 Chattaha, a dancing girl. 
 
 Chebec, a large boat of the felucca kind used by pirates. 
 
 Chechia, a red woollen cap worn under the turban. 
 
 Cheik. This word, which signifies chief, is at the same time associated with 
 age. 
 
 Chott, a lake. 
 
 Couscoussou, a national dish, made of flour, and cooked by steam. It 
 answers to the polenta of the Italians. 
 
 Damah, the game of draughts. 
 Diffa, a hospitable repast. 
 
326 
 
 ARAB WORDS. 
 
 Djebel, a mountain. 
 
 Douar, an assemblage of tents. 
 
 Foumes, mouth, as Foumes-Sahara, the mouth of the desert. 
 
 Gandoura , a kind of shirt or frock worn by the Ivabyles. 
 
 Gourbi, a hut. 
 
 Habaya, an Arab shirt. 
 
 Hadars , a name given to the Moors by the other natives of Algeria. It 
 signifies men of houses, that is men who dwell in towns, in opposition 
 to the men of tents. 
 
 Ha'ik, a short kind of burnous without a hood, worn by women. 
 Hallouf-el-rhaba , the wild boar. 
 
 Hannnan , a bath. 
 
 Kadi , a Mahometan judge. 
 
 Kautara, a bridge. 
 
 Khalkals , anklets. 
 
 Khodja , an adjutant or secretary. 
 
 Khouaus , brethren—a religious Order. 
 
 Marabout, a Mahometan priest. The word is derived from mrabeth , 
 devoted or attached to God. 
 
 Marabout , a small temple held sacred, owing to some venerated Mara¬ 
 bout being buried in it. 
 
 Marabout is also a part of the superstructure of an Arab building. 
 
 Mahomet , a tuft of hair left to grow on the crown of the head ; it is so 
 called after the name of the Prophet. 
 
 Makach , no, not, don’t know, do not understand. 
 
 Mekahla , a long-barrelled Arab gun with an old-fashioned flint lock. 
 Muezzin, the officiating Marabout who calls the faithful to prayers from 
 the top of the minaret. 
 
 Nam , an ostrich. 
 
 Nemir, a panther. 
 
 Oued, a river. 
 
 Ouled, tribe. 
 
 Oumena, a chief of several villages. 
 
 Ourida, a little rose, like rosina in Italian. 
 
 Outa, a plain. 
 
ARAB WORDS. 
 
 327 
 
 Rezala, a gazelle. 
 
 Rhamadan, a Mahometan fast of thirty days. 
 
 Roumi, a Christian, derived from Romanus. The plural of this word is 
 rouama in Arabic, but we have written it simply with s as many French 
 authors do. 
 
 Sabeehad, the beautiful. 
 
 S’ba, the lion in Arabic, a name we have used occasionally in the lion 
 stories to avoid repetition. 
 
 Said, lord or master, a title given by the Arabs to the lion. 
 
 Solitaire (French), a wild boar : so called after it is two years old. 
 
 Souk, market. 
 
 Spdis, a native cavalry officer in the French service. 
 
 Tamtam, a large flat metallic drum used also by the Hindoos. 
 Tenia , a defile. 
 
 Thizzi, a mountain defile. 
 
 Thuia, a lignumvitse. 
 
 Tolbas, learned men. 
 
 Yatagan, a kind of knife or poinard. 
 
 Zareefeh, the elegant. 
 
SPANISH AND ARAB PHRASES. 
 
 Una vent a en despoblado, a small inn standing quite alone and solitary in 
 the open country. 
 
 Ni rey ni roque, not a living soul. 
 
 No hay mal qne por bien no venga , No evit happens but what comes for 
 good. 
 
 Enta mnin , Where do’st thou come from ? 
 
 To make powder speak is a figurative expression amongst the Arabs for 
 firing off guns and cannon. 
 
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