2 JOURNEY FROM

of a Mediterranean climate ; and the whole together, viewed

under favourable impressions, gave to Tripoly an appearance of

much more interest and importance than it was afterwards found

to have deserved.

The reception which we experienced from Mr. Warrington, the

British Consul-General at Tripoly, was friendly and attentive in the

extreme ; and, on our landing, the consulate was assigned to us as a

residence, which he obligingly left at our disposal. The arrival of

our party was now signified officially to the Bashaw, who appointed

a day to receive us ; being at the time indisposed, on account of the

operation of burning, which he had undergone as a cure for the

rheumatism His Highness was provided with a skilful European

physician, who had been for some time attached to his person and

to the court ; but the prejudices of his country were too strong to

be overcome by reason, and the remedies of Dr. Dicheson gave way

to the popular superstition.

On the day appointed for the interview, we proceeded to the

palace of His Highness, accompanied by the Consul and Captain

Smyth. The streets through which we had to pass, on our way to

* The practice of cautei-y is well known to be generally adopted, and confidently depended upon, by the Arabs and Moors, as an effectual remedy for almost every dis-

order. The custom may be traced to a very remote period, and is alluded to by

Herodotus, (Melpomene, 187,) as peculiar to the Libyan Nomades, the early inhabitants

of a considerable part of the coast of Northern Africa. The remedy is indeed too

indiscriminately applied, but is not, however, unfrequently productive of good effects.

We were assured by a man at Bengazi, that he had been cured three times of the plague

by the mere application of a hot iron to the tumours which attend the disease ; and if

we might judge from the dreadful scars which remained, his attacks were by no means

slight ones.