wledge fathers and mothers in those to whom they are sold;
and, excepting in two cases, cheerfulness has appeared to reign among
them"--and the authoress was a witness of the deep sympathy felt by the
slaves of the wife of a Turkish grandee, who was confined in the state
prison by order of the Pasha. The principal employment of these fair
prisoners, independent of the preparation of sherbets and other household
duties, consists in embroidery, "which is extremely beautiful, as superior
as it is unlike to any fancy-work practised in England:--taste of a very
remarkable kind is displayed in its execution, similar in many respects to
that exhibited in the most elaborate decorations of Arabian architecture."
Few, even of the ladies of rank, can read or write their own language--but
there are some exceptions--the accomplished family of Habeeb Effendi has
already been noticed; and Mrs Poole was acquainted with another instance,
in which the daughters had learned, under the tuition of a brother who had
been educated in Europe, to read and understand not only the literature of
their own country, but the poets of Italy. The surveillance exercised over
the young white slaves "can only be compared to that which is established
in the convent. A deviation from the strictest rules of modesty is
followed by severe punishment, and often by the death of the delinquent
... but if they conduct themselves well, they are frequently married by
their masters to persons of high respectability; and the ceremony of the
marriage[24] of a slave in the high hareems is conducted with extreme
magnificence. Those, however, who from their personal charms have become
the favourites of their master, and particularly those who have borne him
a child, are seldom or never thus dismissed, and cannot legally be sold:
having in this respect the advantage of the wife, who is always liable to
be divorced without cause assigned, and at a moment's notice."

In the hareems of the middle and lower classes, the same system of strict
seclusion cannot, of course, be maintained as in the case of the "hidden
jewels" (as they are called) of the grandees:--the women frequent the
public baths, and are allowed to visit their neighbours without restraint;
but shopping is generally prohibited, for reasons which may be gathered
from the Thousand and One Nights:--and goods for sale are brought to the
hareems by female brokers. The system of blindfold marriages is universal;
and exc