Whereupon, Sadly Perplexed, All The Berberis Went To Their
Priest, And Dolefully Related The Circumstance, Expecting Absolution,
As The Offence Was Involuntary.
"You have eaten filth," said the man of
Allah.
"Well," replied the Berberis, falling upon him with their fists,
"filth or not, we have eaten it." The Berberi, I must remark, is the
"Paddy" of this part of the world, celebrated for bulls and blunders.
[FN#25] The generic name given by Indians to English officials.
[FN#26] There are four kinds of tobacco smoked in Egypt. The first and
best is the well-known Latakia, generally called "Jabali," either from
a small seaport town about three hours' journey south of Latakia, or
more probably because grown on the hills near the ancient Laodicea.
Pure, it is known by its blackish colour, fine shredding, absence of
stalk, and an undescribable odour, to me resembling that of creosote;
the leaf, too, is small, so that when made into cigars it must be
covered over with a slip of the yellow Turkish tobacco called Bafra.
Except at the highest houses unadulterated Latakia is not to be had in
Cairo. Yet, mixed as it is, no other growth exceeds it in flavour and
fragrance. Miss Martineau smoked it, we are told, without
inconvenience, and it differs from our Shag, Bird's-eye, and Returns,
in degree, as does Chateau Margeau from a bottle of cheap strong
Spanish wine. To bring out its flavour, the connoisseur smokes it in
long pipes of cherry, jasmine, maple, or rosewood, and these require a
servant skilled in the arts of cleaning and filling them. The best
Jabali at Cairo costs about seven piastres the pound; after which a
small sum must be paid to the Farram or chopper, who prepares it for
use.
2nd. Suri (Tyrian), or Shami, or Suryani, grown in Syria, an inferior
growth, of a lighter colour than Latakia, and with a greenish tinge;
when cut, its value is about three piastres per pound. Some smokers mix
this leaf with Jabali, which, to my taste, spoils the flavour of the
latter without improving the former. The strongest kind, called Korani
or Jabayl, is generally used for cigarettes; it costs, when of
first-rate quality, about five piastres per pound.
3rd. Tumbak, or Persian tobacco, called Hijazi, because imported from
the Hijaz, where everybody smokes it, and supposed to come from Shiraz,
Kazerun, and other celebrated places in Persia. It is all but
impossible to buy this article unadulterated, except from the caravans
returning after the pilgrimage. The Egyptians mix it with native
growths, which ruins its flavour and gives it an acridity that "catches
the throat," whereas good tumbak never yet made a man cough. Yet the
taste of this tobacco, even when second-rate, is so fascinating to some
smokers that they will use no other. To be used it should be wetted and
squeezed, and it is invariably inhaled through water into the lungs:
almost every town has its favourite description of pipe, and these are
of all kinds, from the pauper's rough cocoa-nut mounted with two reeds,
to the prince's golden bowl set with the finest stones.
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