198 DISEASES.

all attention is out of the question ; every man is left to himself, hence many of course perish, who, with but slight care, might easily have been saved, but Allah Kerim !

There are no prophylactics against all these diseases, and I know of no better advice to give to Europeans travelling in this country than to caution them against drinking new milk or water; the latter they should always boil, and ought moreover to be careful to keep themselves, and more especially their feet, warm during the rainy season ; they should further use a large quantity of pepper with their food, and rather eat too little than too much. In cases of dysentery, for which rice and gum-water are generally prescribed in Egypt, the traveller should by all means avoid these same remedies, for he would only debilitate his digestive organs the more. For my own part I resorted latterly to the shells of the pomegranate steeped for a few hours in cold water, and found this remedy very successful. It is quite a mistake to imagine the use of spirituous liquors pernicious in trojiical climates, for I convinced myself, but unfortunately too late, of the contrary. On my own personal experience I can assert that a moderate quantity of brandy (in defect of wine) or Merissa taken daily is an excellent prophylactic. All those natives, moreover, who possess the means of procuring it, enjoy health, and are not so easily attacked with fever or dysentery ; it will of course be understood that every excess is hurtful.