Instances Are Related Of People Firing Even Into The Mosque Upon
Their Enemies, While Engaged In Prayer.
Within the last twenty years a man named Hassan had been appointed Aga
of the castle, which gave him the surname of Hassan el Kalay.
Born among
the dregs of the people, his great skill and cunning, and determined
hardihood, had raised him to this office. He was a man of a very short
stature and a limping gait, but notwithstanding of great bodily
strength; and his voice, when he was in anger, is said to have terrified
even the boldest. After several years' hard struggle, this man succeeded
in becoming complete master and tyrant of the town: he kept a guard of
town's-people, of Bedouins, and Moggrebyns in his service, and had all
the rabble on his side. He was guilty of the most flagrant acts of
injustice; he oppressed the pilgrims, extorted money from them,
confiscated the property of all the hadjys and foreigners who died here,
withheld the surra brought from Constantinople by the Hadj, from the
people for whom it was destined, and amassed great wealth. Instances are
recorded of tyranny and brutality which cover his name with infamy. A
rich old widow, with her daughter, having arrived at Medina, from
Constantinople, to visit the tomb, he seized on her, and compelled her
to marry him; two days after, she was found dead, her property was
seized by him; and a short time after he forced the daughter to yield to
his embraces.
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