The House Of The Keeper Of The Prison, In Which I Was Confined, Adjoins The Wall, At The Foot Of Which Is A Spacious Yard, Where A Great Number Of People, Mostly Women And Children, Are Kept As Pledges, To Prevent Their Husbands, Parents, And Relations From Rebelling.

The boys while young run about loose in the yard, but when they come to any size, they are put in irons, and confined in a strong tower.

The women and children dwell in little huts in the yard built on purpose, the children going mostly naked, unless when the weather is very cold, and then they have sheep-skin coats.

[Footnote 332: This is a most improper mode of description, as it is now impossible to say what size Bristol was then. - E.]

The first night of our journey we arrived at Siam, a small town, with a cattle, on the side of a hill, sixteen miles from Zenan, the country about being very barren. The 19th we came to Surage, a small village eighteen miles from Siam, in a very barren country. The people are very poor, and go almost naked, except a cloth round their middles reaching to their knees. The 20th, Damare, or Dhamar, a town built of stone and lime, but in five separate parts, like so many distinct villages. It stands in a spacious plain or valley, abounding in water, and producing plenty of grain and other provisions. This town is twenty miles from Surage, and we remained here two days by order of Abdallah Chelabi, the Kiabys, who was governor of this province. The 22d we came to Ermin, a small village, about fifteen miles. The 23d, Nakhil Sammar, a common inn for travellers, called Sensors by the Turks. There are many of these sensors between Mokha and Zenan, being built at the cost of the grand signior for the relief of travellers. This sensor stands in the middle of a very steep hill, called Nakhil Sammar, on the top of which is a great castle, in which the governor of the province resides, who is an Arabian; these craggy mountainous countries being mostly governed by Arabians, as the inhabitants of the mountains cannot brook the proud and insolent government of the Turks. No Turk may pass this way, either to or from Zenan, without a passport from the governor of the province from which they come. This sensor is about fourteen miles from Ermin.

The 24th we came to Mohader, a small village at the foot of the great hill, thirteen miles from Nakhil Sammar. Our chiaus had a warrant from the pacha to take up asses for our men, and accordingly did so at this place over night; but next morning the Arabians lay in ambush in the way, and took back their asses, neither of our chiauses daring to give them one uncivil word. The 25th we came to Rabattamaine, a sensor, with a few small cottages and shops, on the side of a hill, sixteen miles.

Enter page number Go  Previous Next
Page 320 of 424
Words from 166989 to 167493 of 221842