firman between this and Cairo.” Ya. “ We £h.all leave it
upon that footing for the prefent, allow me only to fay, I am
a fervant o f the k in g o f England, travelling, by his order,
and for my own and my countrymen's information; that I
had rather rifk my life twenty times, than lofe the papers I
have left in the defert.” Aga. “ Go in peace, and eat and fleep.
Carry them, fays he, fpeaking to his attendants, to the houfe
o f the Schourbatchie,” Thus ended ou r firft interview with
the Aga, who put us in poifeiTion o f a very good houfe, and it
happened to be the very man to whom I was recommended
b y my correfpondehts at Cairo when I was firft here, who
had abfolutely forgotten, but foon remembered me, as did
many others, but my old friend the A ga had been changed-,
and was then at Cairo,
W e were not lo n g arrived before we received from the
A ga about fifty loaves o f fine wheat bread, and feveral large
dilh.es o f dreft meat. But the fmell o f theft laft no fooner
reached me than I fainted upon the floor. I made feveral
trials afterwards, with no better fuccefs, for the firft two
days, nor could I reconcile myfelf to any fort o f food but
toafted bread and coflee. My fervants had none o f ihefe
qualms, for they partook largely and greedily o f the Aga’s
bounty,
I h a d kept the hpufe five or fix days after my arrival,,
d uring which i correfponded with the Aga only by meflages,
and from my fervant who had palled between us he had
learned the whole o f our adventures. I then went to the
.caftle fo r an audience, and in treated the Aga that he would
procure fix or eight camels to mount my men upon, and
bring
bring my baggage from Saffieha. He gave a ftart at the
firft requCft, and would not by any means hear o f that pro-
p o fa l; he called it tempting God, and affined me I ihould
be cut o ff by the very men that had murdered Mahomet
Aga ; that, having feen the cafes and things which I had
thrown away at Umarack,-they Would follow my trad! on
to Saffieha, would have taken ever thing that I had left, and
wou ld be now purfuing me up to the gates o f Aflouan. A ll
this was extremely probable, but it was not to fuch reafon-
in g that I could be a Convert. I had infinuated that the well-
fare o f mankind was concerned in the recovery o f thofe
papers ; that the're-was among them recipes, which, i f they
did not totally prevent the plague, and the fmall-pox, would
at leaft greatly lefien their violence and duration. This,
and: perhaps a more forcible infinuation, that he ffiould not
be without a recompence for any trouble that he gave him-
fe lf on my account, brought him at laft to confent to m y
requeft, and we arranged our expedition accordingly.
Our firft ftep was to fend for Idris and the Arab from
Daroo, for neither o f them would enter the town with us,
fo r fear fome ftory ihould be trumped up againft them
regarding Mahomet Towafli’s murder, which would not
have failed to have been the cafe had not we been with
them; but upon the Aga fending a man o f |confidence fo r
them, they both came without delay, and were lodged in
my houfe, under my protection.
T h e night following, everything being ready, we fet out
after it was dark from the caftle, all upon dromedaries,
The gates o f the town were open for us, and were immediately
fliut upon our paffing through them ; the Aga fearin
g