cers, from whom, throughout, every friend- hundred fellow-beings had in a few seconds ly and hospitable attention was received; and, if it does not convey to the public much that is new, is nevertheless acceptable as a recent glance at a country of general interest to readers of every class. Soon after landing at Algiers, an improvised explosion of a magazine gave our military tourist a military salute. Enjoying an evening stroll in the Place de Gouvernement, we are told : "Three sides are nearly enclosed with handsome well-built houses in the French style, and the fourth, facing the sea, juts out in an obtuse angle, of which a portion of the northern face is occupied by a mosque of no architectural beauty, and the other, overlook ing a battery of heavy guns, affords a splendid view of the port, the shipping, and the bay of Algiers. In the Place are the principal hotels, the fashionable cafés, and the best shops. As the night closed in, the cafés blazed with light, and the square was thronged with officers, soldiers, sailors, Jews, Moors, Arabs, the wealthy merchant and the poor colonist, the freed negro, the awkward conscript of the last 'tirage,' and the handsome dragoon in the soldierlike uniform of the Chasseurs d'Afrique, mingled together in a scene of picturesque confusion, each following his own method in search of pleasure after the toils of the past day. This scene of gayety was, however, soon to change. At ten o'clock we left the Café de la Perle, and lingering near the entrance with the sound of the music still ringing in our ears, were startled by a bright flash in the direction of the harbor, a sheet of flame rose into the air, instantaneously followed by a loud explosion, and then several smaller ones in rapid succession: the ground shook as with us. an earthquake, and broken glass from the windows facing the sea, fell in showers around For a few seconds a dead silence reigned; the crowd seemed paralyzed-not a word was spoken-each looked round upon his neighbors as if seeking information from those as ignorant as himself. Then with one impulse, as if the spell that had held the crowd been hurried unwarned into the presence of their God. Lord Fielding having been separ ated in the confusion from Count de Goltz and myself, was one of the first who reached the scene, and met the survivors of this sad event; officers, soldiers, and sailors, mixed with ladies, some dressed for an evening party, and others risen from their beds with infants in their arms, as they had rushed from the neighboring houses in the first impulse of terror; the moans of the wounded, alas! but few in number, were mingled with the screams of the frightened children; wives were seeking their husbands, parents their children, and friends each other; no one knew who had perished, or who had escaped, and in some cases this dreadful uncertainty lasted until morning; members of the same family having in the darkness and confusion taken refuge in different houses. Next morning on visiting the scene, we found that a large building, situated between the admiralty and the lighthouse was a heap of ruins; blocks of stone, huge beams, and masses of masonry confusedly thrown together, the portions of the walls that were still standing cracked in various places; the houses occupied by the flag-captain and the captain of the port much damaged, the sides nearest the explosion blown down; the lantern of the phare' broken, and the admiralty slightly damaged. During this and many succeeding days the troops were busily employed searching for the bodies, many of which were not discovered for some time; one poor wretch was found alive amid the ruins on the fourth day; and in one long room, used as an artillery barrack, and containing rows of beds on either side, nearly fifty bodies were found lying in death, as they had laid them down to sleep; and in the centre, the crushed and disfigured remains of a party engaged at play, the stakes before them, the cards still firmly grasped in their stiffened hands. The fate of Madame ***, the wife of the port-captain, was most melancholy. Whilst in the midst of her friends, who, to the number of thirty, were that evening collected at her house, she heard her child crying in the adjoining room, she hastened to soothe it, and, on crossing the passage from one door to the other, the explosion took place: she was killed instantaneously; her child in one room, and her husband and friends in the other, escaping unhurt. The Abd-el-daughter of Madame P * **, a little girl be motionless had been suddenly broken, a rush was made towards the harbor. Every body spoke at once; a hundred wonderful and contradictory rumors passed from mouth to mouth with extraordinary rapidity. Kader and the Arabs are attacking the city, cried one. It is an earthquake. No, no, it is the English, it is 'la perfide Albion," exclaimed another, 'who, according to her usual custom, has, without declaring war, seized upon the harbor and the fleet.' 'Nonsense, answered another, I tell you the great magazine on the Mole has exploded, and the lighthouse, the arsenal, the admiralty, the admiral and all his staff, are blown up. This last report, although greatly exaggerated, unfortunately proved to be too true; upwards of a tween four and five years of age, was asleep in a room, part of the roof of which was blown down; she was taken out of bed and carried from the port to the Grand Place still asleep, neither the noise of the explosion, the falling ruins, nor the removal, having awoke her. The total loss by this melancholy accident proved to be one hundred and one killed and thirteen wounded. The cause of the explosion will probably for ever remain unknown." The origin of the French invasion is stated in connexion with an account of the rising 11,000 feet above the level of the sea, Kasbah, or the Dey's private apartments and whose climate, extending as far as Bog(now a barrack), within which is a small har, resembles that of the south of France. The Little Desert-an elevated district, but room where was given the famous 'coup scantily watered. The mountainous country de chasse-mouche,' an event pregnant with of the Djebel Ammour, and the Djebel Sahary, consequences of such vital importance to from four to five thousand feet in height, and the Dey and the regency. On the 27th of twenty-five leagues in width. Further south April, 1827, the eve of the feast of the comes the northern part of the basin of the ،، Beyram, the diplomatic corps were, according to custom, presented to pay their respects to the Dey. During the interview an angry discussion took place between the Dey and the French consul, which ended by the Dey in a passionate moment striking the consul in the face with his fan. To this blow the subsequent events that have taken place are to be referred; it cost the Dey his throne, drove him an exile to die in a foreign land, caused the ruin of the Turkish dominion, which had endured for upwards of three hundred years, and in replacing it by an European and Christian government, must, sooner or later, work a most beneficial change in the condition of the northern coast of Africa, however dim and distant such a prospect may appear at present. This room is now used as a Mzi-a series of abrupt elevations with an mountains nor water. From the sea coast to within four leagues south of Boghar, "In the Meteedjah grow the aloe, palm, south of France-such as evergreen-oaks, trees of the Desert are the lentisci, the karouba, the juniper-which attains the height of thirty feet, and, in damp places, the tamarisk. poultry-yard; and, singularly enough, as In the chains of the Djebel Ammour and Djewe entered, a cock strutting on the deserted bel Sahary the trees are confined to the lentisdivan proclaimed his victory over some fee-ci, cypresses, pines, and in the higher parts bler rival by a triumphant crow, an appropriate emblem of the real state of affairs." The proud Cock of Gaul no doubt felt himself at home in the ex-harem; and his strutting and crowing on the deserted divan, just as if it were a dunghill, would make a picture for Landseer, conveying a potent animal-moral, and prophetic of the farther fall of Turkey; the motto, O Dey and Night, but this is wondrous strange! Leaving the Cock in possession, the visitors set out for the interior, penetrated several mountain passes, stopped at Medeah, and thence took a trip to the Little Desert to see the natives at home, and have some sport in the way of hunting and shooting. Before quoting a few of the incidents, we may as well copy the view of the country traversed between the 34th and 37th degrees of latitude, i. e. between the Mediterranean and the Great Zahara. "The regions to the southward of Algiers, lying between the 34th and 37th degrees of latitude, possess six climates perfectly distinct from each other. The plain of the Meteedjah, which is low, warm, and damp. The chain of the Atlas, twenty-five leagues in width, of the mountains, the ilex. In the gardens 1 are not to be found in either the Great or Little ing their dress, and both writing and speaking Desert. On leaving Taguine, the ostrich begins to appear, as well as a large species of antelope, called by the Arabs 'louache.' In the Great Desert the horned viper, a serpent of a very dangerous species, is numerous; and there are also lizards, nearly three feet long, with a flat, denticulated tail. The largest serpents are rarely more than seven feet and a half in length. When the sea-breeze, having passed over the Meteedjah, reaches the Atlas, its temperature becomes reduced, and it deposits its humidity in the form of clouds, rain, or snow; then, carried on over the Little Desert, the clouds are dispersed by the increased heat of the soil, only to be again re-formed on the ranges of the Djebel Ammour, and finally disappear as they pass over the burning plains of the Sahara. Thus, often in the Little Desert the weather will be beautiful, while the Atlas and Djebel Ammour, to the north and Arabic fluently; he is thus able to communicate with the tribes under his government without the medium of an interpreter. On our asking some questions about a lion that we had heard belonged to him, he said he would introduce us at once, and turning to his servant, desired him to bring up Sultan. In a few minutes the door opened and the lion entered the room, the man only leading him by a tuft of his mane. He was a magnificent animal, two years old, and full grown, all but his mane; which although only a foot long, made nevertheless a respectable appearance; he did not seem to care about our being strangers, but walking about the room like a large dog, permitted us to take liberties with him, such as patting him, shaking a paw, and making him exhibit his teeth and claws. He showed, however, a marked predilection in favor of his old acquaintances, and lying down south, are both enveloped in clouds; and when before them, turned on his back to be scratchGeneral Marey's expedition crossed the riage ed. After a scratch or two he began to of the Djebel Ammour in the midst of a vio- yawn, and was fairly settling himself for a lent storm, the sky was serene and clear, and nap, when a cigar was puffed in his face-a proceeding he evidently did not approve ofrising in a hurry, curling up his lips, and wrinkling his nose, he exposed to view a splendid set of teeth, a sure sign that he was not pleased. A hearty sneeze seemed to restore him to good temper; and bearing no malice, he returned a friendly pat bestowed upon him by Captain Martenot, who had been the aggressor, by rubbing his head caressing the weather lovely in the deserts on either up, vegetation cannot exist, and these plains The history of the Razzia of General Marey in 1844 is reprinted from a pamphlet In the Little Desert where the sporting was pursued, Captain Kennedy proceeds to describe the battue. privately circulated by that distinguished officer; and will, we dare say, especially interest military readers; but all that we need say of the General is, that he did every fixed upon by the Arabs for our first beat, thing in his power to render the expedition of our countrymen agreeable to them. In the mean time the aspect of the morning That he got them to see as many of the lions as he could may be granted, when we mention that among the rest he exhibited to them a lame one of his own. "During the evening (says Captain Kennedy) we learnt much that was interesting concerning the Arabs from the General, who is more intimately acquainted with the Arab "Day was breaking when we were aroused next morning by the arrival of a party of the Arabs who were to assist at the hunt. The morning was bitterly cold, the thermometer standing at 43 degrees; and a dense mist covering the face of the mo mountains, rendered objects at twenty yards invisible. The sun was just rising red and angry through the fog, when we set forth for the spot that had been where we arrived after half an hour's walk. was changed; the sun, having dispersed the mist, shone gloriously, giving promise of a fine day. Filty Arabs were collected when we came up, a number that afterwards swelled to nearly two hundred, many of them mounted, who, having heard what was going on, joined us from the neighboring tribes; a multitude of dogs was also gathered together, for where the brushwood is so thick, it is difficult to force the boars to break cover, without ac character, and with their manners and cus-tually coming upon them: and therefore any toms, than perhaps any other officer in the French service. For several years command ant of the Spahis (the Arab cavalry in the pay of the French), he lived among them, adopt little barking cur that has a tolerable nose is useful. The Righas are held the best sportsmen in this part of the Atlas, and are passionately fond of hunting; a single man will sometimes follow a boar for two or three days by | boring ravine, but not until a two-year old had been shot by an Arab, and a fine old boar severely hit. He managed to get away; and we afterwards heard, on our return to Medeah, that he had been tracked, and sent to General Marey a day or two after by the Arabs. The chase having taken a contrary direction to our camp, we had a long walk before us under a broiling sun; the breeze had died away, and the stunted trees and bushes afforded no shade at noon. At one o'clock we reached the tent, where the thermometer in the shade stood at 92 degrees, after eight hours' hard work, well repaid for our labor by the magificence of the scenery, and the excitement of a sport so novel in all its features." the track, and kill him at last with a single dog, seldom firing unless within a few yards; when killed, the only use they make of the meat is to feed their dogs; gs; and, if near a French station, they occasionally take it there for sale. Some of the dogs are handsome, powerful animals, resembling those bred in England between a greyhound and a foxhound, are courageous, and will singly attack a boar. These dogs are rare, and valued accordingly; a fine one being seldom parted with by an Arab, unless tempted by a high price. The place of rendezvous was the summit of a wooded ridge, sloping gradually down to a ravine below, the ground narrowing with the declivity, and enclosed on both hands by the steep sides of the surrounding mountains. The twenty voltigeurs, placed at intervals among the Arabs, were formed in an extended line along the ridge, two of the guns, and all the dogs remained with them; the rest of the guns, descending quietly, were posted on the bank of a small stream that ran through the valley, at the points where it was considered probable that the boars would attempt to pass. When we were all placed, the signal was given from below, and the line advanced, making as much noise as possible in beating the cover, her head languishingly from side to side, she AN ARAB WEDDING. An Arab wedding, in a high family, offered at least one incident of a novel nature, and curiously characteristic of the people: "As soon as we had taken our stand in the front row, the music, which had ceased for a few minutes, struck up, and the lady in the midst commenced her performances; inclining the infantry firing blank cartridge, the Arabs shouting, and the dogs barking. Nothing, however, was found; and the two next ravines were also drawn blank. In the fourth beat we were more fortunate; recent traces of the presence of the game were discovered. The boar could not be far off, and laying on the dogs, a dozen voices roared out 'Haloof, haloot (pig, pig); a general rush was made in the direction of those who had viewed the game, the noise redoubled, and the scene became most exciting. The ravine, steep, rocky, and clothed with thick brushwood, seemed to be alive with men, the burnished barrels of the voltigeurs glancing in the sunlight as they pushed forward from bush to bush, keeping up an irregular fire, each shot marked by a curl of white smoke rising from the copse, and the report repeated again and again, echoing among the hills. The Arabe, with their long guns, and the loose folds of their bernouses waving in the air, as they rushed at full speed over the roughest ground, mingled their wild cries with the yelling and barking of the dogs; on the ridges overlooking the ravine, the horsemen watching the motions of those below, to enable them to cut off the boars if they should take to the hill, were galloping about at a fearful pace over the rocks and stones, now lost sight of in some deep gully, then seen clambering from rock to rock, their animals more like goats than horses, and having regained the crest, every movement of the steeds and their excited riders was visible to us below, each figure standing out in bold relief against the deep blue of a cloudless sky. Notwithstanding the exertions of the mounted party, the game crossed the hill into the neigh-letic youth had particularly attracted my at beat time with her feet, raising each foot alternately from the ground with a jerking action, as if she had been standing on a hot floor, at the same time twisting about her body, with a slow movement of the hands and arms. Several others succeeded her, and danced in the same style, with an equal want of grace. A powerful inducement to exert themselves was not wanting, for one of them more than once received some tolerably severe blows, both from a stick and the flat of the sword; what the reason was I do not know, but suppose that either she was lazy or danced badly. While the dancing was going on the spectators were not idle; armed with guns, pistols, and blunderbusses, with enormous bell mouths, an irregular fire was kept up. Advancing a step or two into the circle, so as to show off before the whole party, an Arab would present his weapon at a friend opposite, throwing himself into a graceful attitude, then suddenly dropping the muzzle at the instant of pulling the trigger, the charge struck the ground close to the feet of the person aimed at. After each report the women set up a long continued shrill cry of lu-lu, lu-lu, and the musicians redoubled their efforts. The advance of one man is usually the signal for others to come forward at the same time, all anxious to surpass their friends and neighbors in dexterity and grace. Ten or a dozen men being crowded into a small space, sometimes not more than six paces wide, brandishing their arms, and, excited by the mimic combat, firing often at random, it is not to be wondered at il accidents happen occasionally to the actors or bystanders. Among the most remarkable, a fine athtention by the ease and gracefulness of his movements. Each time he came forward after loading, I had marked his excitement increasing, and now carried away by it, he seemed to forget the peaceful nature of the meeting, for, levelling his gun deliberately at the Arab standing next one of the French officers and myself, he fired with the muzzle within a couple of feet of his body; the man fell, rolled over and over, and lay as if dead. On exami feat, and leads to an interesting communication: "While drinking our coffee, we observed a boy who, leaning with folded arms upon a stick, watched every motion that we made. The boy's countenance was disgustingly repulsive, and the vacant yet cunning expression of his features, more those of a brute than of a nation of the wound, there was no fear to be human being, as well as the form of his misentertained for his life, as he was hit near the shapen head, stamped him as an idiot from his hip, and a double fold of his bernous, which birth. A tattered bernous hung loosely on his was burnt through, had deadened the force of shoulders, and cold and wet as the evening the powder. It was nevertheless an ugly was, he stood staring in at the entrance of the looking wound, as pieces of the woollen ber- tent, while the other Arabs, whom curiosity nous and some grains of the coarse powder had at first attracted, gathered round the fire had been driven into the burnt flesh. The rest a few yards distant. Knowing that the Arabs of the party did not care much about it, and regard as saints, madmen, and those whose inthe wounded man's wife, instead of looking tellects are affected, I paid no more attention after her husband, rushed up to the man who to him, and left the tent for a few minutes. had shot him, and, assisted by some female When I returned, the boy was still there, fixed friends, opened upon him a torrent of abuse in the same attitude; and I was told that he with such evident fluency of tongue and com- had just made a display of his sanctity, by mand of language, that after end endeavoring in holding in his naked hand a live scorpion, and vain to get in a word or two, he fairly turned then eating it, without suffering in the least from its poisonous sting. As he was standing tail and walked off. I asked in the evening close to the tent, there could be no doubt but ed that it would not signify, he would be well that he performed the disgusting feat of dein a week or so. Ten minutes afterwards he vouring the reptile, but I was rather increducame himself limping to our tent, evidently lous as to the fact of the sting not having been much more distressed at the serious injury his removed, We were discussing this point, bernous had received, than at his own hurt, when, guessing that he was the object of our and exhibiting the big holes burnt in his gar- conversation, he went away, and returned al how the wounded man was, and they answer ment with a most woebegone expression of countenance. The same rejoicings continued all the afternoon; and even when our numbers were increased by the return of the shooting party, no objections were made to our going to and fro as often as we pleased. It is the custom always to make a present to the musicians, which I understood was handed over to the bridegroom; so perhaps the five-franc piece given by each of us may have had some effect. The actual ceremonies of an Arab marriage are very simple. The young man having made his choice, the two fathers meet and settle what sum is to be paid for the bride; this important point arranged, a contract is drawn up and signed, the money paid, the bridegroom goes for his wife and brings her home. A divorce is a still easier matter; the husband gives his reason for desiring it (frequently a very trifiing one), and the woman returns to her father, who, however, is entitled to keep the sum he originally received at the time of the marriage. Owing to their habits of life, the Arab women enjoy a greater degree of comparative liberty than falls to the lot of females of other Mahometan nations. Constantly employed in the severest domestic labor in the field, as well as at home, concealment of the person, as practised by the Moors and inhabitants of cities, is impossible in the douar, neither do they attempt it." most immediately with another scorpion in his hand. Taking a piece of stick, I examined it most closely in his uncovered hand, and perfectly satisfied myself that it had not been deprived of its sting, or injured in any way. The scorpion was of a tolerable size-upwards of two inches long-quite lively, and able to inflict a very painful wound, the effects of which would be apparent almost instantly, and last for a considerable time. Standing over the boy, I watched him narrowly, to see that he did not pinch off the tail of the reptile, or play any trick; but, half raising his hand to his head, he put his mouth to his open palm, and I saw distinctly the scorpion writhing between his teeth as he took it up, and heard the crunching of its shelly covering, as he deliberatley chewed and then swallowed it. Neither his hands nor his mouth suffered in the slightest degree, and after a short interval he produced and ate another in the same way, which I also examined. The boy, since the early period when the infirmity of his mind became apparent, had been brought up a member of the religious sect of the Aïsaoua, who claim the privilege, by the special gift of God to their founder, of being proof against the venom of reptiles, and the effects of fire. The present chief of the sect resides near Medea, and his disciples are to be found scattered over the whole of Northern Africa; they are held in a certain degree of reverence, but do not possess much influence. Captain Martenot Our next extract relates a remarkable gave us these details, and referred me for furVOL. III.-No. III. 60 |