I Requested Of The Pasha The Favour Of A Bouyourdi, Or
General Passport To His Officers In The Haouran, Which He Readily
Granted, And On Receiving It I Found That I Was Recommended In Very
Strong Terms.
Knowing that there were many Christians, chiefly of the
Greek church, I thought it might be equally useful to procure from the
Greek Patriarch of Damascus, with whom I was well acquainted, a letter
to his flock in the Haouran.
On communicating my wishes, he caused a
circular letter to be written to all the priest, which I found of
greater
DEPARTURE FROM DAMASCUS.
[p.52]weight among the Greeks than the Bouyourdi was among the Turks.
Being thus furnished with what I considered most necessary, I assumed
the dress of the Haouran people, with a Keffie, and a large sheep-skin
over my shoulders: in my saddle bag I put one spare shirt, one pound of
coffee beans, two pounds of tobacco, and a day's provender of barley for
my horse. I then joined a few Felahs of Ezra, of one of whom I hired an
ass, though I had nothing to load it with but my small saddle-bag; but I
knew this to be the best method of recommending myself to the protection
of my fellow travellers; as the owner of the ass necessarily becomes the
companion and protector of him who hires it. Had I offered to pay him
before setting out merely for his company on the way, he would have
asked triple the sum I gave him, without my deriving the smallest
advantage from this increase, while he would have considered my conduct
as extraordinary and suspicious. In my girdle I had eighty piastres,
(about £4. sterling) and a few more in my pocket, together with a watch,
a compass, a journal book, a pencil, a knife, and a tobacco purse. The
coffee I knew would be very acceptable in the houses where I might
alight; and throughout the journey I was enabled to treat all the
company present with coffee.
My companions intending to leave Damascus very early the next morning, I
quitted my lodgings in the evening, and went with them to sleep in a
small Khan in the suburb of Damascus, at which the Haouaerne, or people
of Haouran, generally alight.
November 9th.--We departed through this gate of the Meidhan, three hours
before sun-rise, and took the road by which the Hadj annually commences
its laborious journey; this gate is called Bab Ullah, the Gate of God,
but might, with more propriety be named Bab-el-Maut, the Gate of Death;
for scarcely a third ever
KESSOUE.
[p.53]returns of those whom a devout adherence to their religion, or the
hope of gain impel to this journey. The approach to Damascus on this
side is very grand: being formed by a road above one hundred and fifty
paces broad, which is bordered on each side by a grove of olive trees,
and continues in a straight line for upwards of an hour.
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