lood, and yet a good sample of
the class that go to upholster a seraglio.

I have never had the slightest anxiety to penetrate the secrets of the
Moslem household, and I consider the man who would wish to poke his nose
into its seclusion no better than Peeping Tom of Coventry--an insolent,
lecherous cad. I would not traverse the street to-morrow to inspect the
champion wives of the Sultan of Turkey and Shah of Persia amalgamated;
and I deserve no credit for it, for I know that they are puppets, and
that more engaging women are to be seen any afternoon shopping in Regent
Street or pirouetting in the ballets of half-a-dozen theatres.

Your lady of the harem is an insipid, pasty-complexioned doll, nine
times out of ten, and would be vastly improved in looks and temperament
if she were subjected to a course of shower-baths, and compelled to take
horse-exercise regularly and earn her bread before she ate it.

How do I know this? it may be asked. Who dares to deny it? is my answer.

But here is a digression from our theme of the condition of the Jews at
Tangier, and all on account of a few poor photographs! In one sentence,
that condition is shameful. It is a reproach to the so-called civilized
Powers that they do not interfere to influence the Emir-al-Mumenin to
behave with more of the spirit of justice towards his Jewish subjects.
In Fez and other cities they have to dwell in a quarter to
themselves--"El Melah" (the dirty spot) it is called in Morocco city;
and when they leave the Melah they have to go bare-footed. They are not
permitted to ride on mules, nor yet to walk on the same side of the
street as Arabs.

The late Sir Moses Montefiore, a very exemplary old man in some
respects, visited Morocco in his eightieth year to intercede on behalf
of his co-religionists, and promises of better treatment were made; but
promises are not always kept.

CHAPTER VI.

A Pattern Despotism--Some Moorish Peculiarities--A Hell upon
Earth--Fighting for Bread--An Air-Bath--Surprises of Tangier--On
Slavery--The Writer's Idea of a Moorish Squire--The Ladder of
Knowledge--Gulping Forbidden Liquor--Division of Time--Singular
Customs--The Shereef of Wazan--The Christian who Captivated the
Moor--The Interview--Moslem Patronage of Spain--A Slap for
England--A Vision of Beauty--An English Desdemona: Her Plaint--One
for the Newspaper Men--The Ladies' Battle--Farewell--The English
Lady's Mai