Into the midst of one of these
groups I one day introduced myself, and pronounced a beraka, or
blessing.
I have lived in different parts of the world, much
amongst the Hebrew race, and am well acquainted with their ways and
phraseology. I was rather anxious to become acquainted with the
state of the Portuguese Jews, and I had now an opportunity. "The
man is a powerful rabbi," said a voice in Arabic; "it behoves us to
treat him kindly." They welcomed me. I favoured their mistake,
and in a few days I knew all that related to them and their traffic
in Lisbon.
I found them a vile, infamous rabble, about two hundred in number.
With a few exceptions, they consist of escapados from the Barbary
shore, from Tetuan, from Tangier, but principally from Mogadore;
fellows who have fled to a foreign land from the punishment due to
their misdeeds. Their manner of life in Lisbon is worthy of such a
goodly assemblage of amis reunis. The generality of them pretend
to work in gold and silver, and keep small peddling shops; they,
however, principally depend for their livelihood on an extensive
traffic in stolen goods which they carry on. It is said that there
is honour amongst thieves, but this is certainly not the case with
the Jews of Lisbon, for they are so greedy and avaricious, that
they are constantly quarrelling about their ill-gotten gain, the
result being that they frequently ruin each other.
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