sirable contingency, I placed an additional pair of large Turkish pistols in the holsters of my saddle; these, with my sabre, a formidable hanjiar, my English pistols stuck in my girdle, and my long gun slung across my shoulder, sufficed to prove to any Arnout desperado, or marauding Haiduc, we might chance to meet on the Sultan's pathways and byways, that the English Frank was not a man to be robbed or maltreated with impunity.

CHAPTER VII.

Departure from Alexinitz-Description of a Turkish guardhouse -Rencounter with the recruits of the Nizam-Embarrassments of a traveller in Turkey-Advantages of being a linguist-Frank Bimbashi-His romantic history-Arrival at Nissa―The great antiquity of that town-Mosques at Nissa― Their administration-Turks and Rayahs.

WE had a pleasant ride over a beautiful country abounding in tiny glades and ravines sufficiently elevated to render it picturesque and romantic. At Drugevatz, with sincere regret, I bade adieu to my two friends, and crossing a small river of the same name, behold I was within the Turkish frontier.

The first object that presented itself, was one of those singular buildings called a karaoul, a species of guardhouse occupied by the Kavaas (gens-d'armes). These karaouls have been erected during the last few years, in the vicinity of the most dangerous passes, for the protection of property and merchandize. They are either temporary buildings, composed merely of a few poles stuck in the ground, and covered with the

branches and leaves of trees, wooden huts, or substantial buildings of wood, one story high, and surrounded by a gallery, which serves as a watch-tower: they are usually reared on some eminence overlooking the surrounding country. In Albania, Bosnia and Upper Macedonia, where the people so frequently break out into open rebellion, we find them constructed of stone-work, strong, and capable of sustaining a lengthened attack; their power of enduring a siege cannot be wondered at, when we remember the train of artillery employed against them is nothing more formidable than the musket. The lower story of these karaouls contains a dungeon for prisoners, and the only mode of entrance is by ascending a ladder, which is drawn up when an attack is anticipated, and being always sufficiently provided with provisions, admirably fulfil the purpose for which they are intended; still a single discharge of a piece of artillery would be sufficient to blow the strongest of them to the four winds of heaven.

In those wild districts, which are situated far from a town or village, they are extremely useful to the traveller as a resting-place, by day or night, and where he can at all times procure a good cup of coffee, and a tchibouque for a few paras.

My kiraidji, since he had crossed the Turkish border, and was now fairly thrown among the infidels, had become a changed man; there was no longer that swaggering and boasting air about him, in short, he appeared to have dwindled to half his usual size; but it

would be difficult to paint his astonishment and vexation when he saw his own gospodin, a Christian of Frangistan, jump from his horse and salute a fine old Arnout, who, in the perfection of tranquillity, was smoking his tchibouque on a mat opposite the door, and solicit a cup of coffee, and the pleasure of smoking a tchibouque with him.

My wish was granted, with that ready, I may say spontaneous, hospitality which characterizes this people; for a Mussulman, of whatever class, is ever highly gratified by the society of a Frank, who, throwing aside reserve, will humour him by relating the latest news from the great world of Frangistan. This was an auspicious commencement of my journey in the land of the Crescent. I passed half an hour with the old warrior who, in his younger days, belonged to the corps of Janissaries, and one of the few that escaped the general massacre. On parting, he saluted me most warmly with a salam aliekoum, not usually addressed to a Giaour, and absolutely forbid his men to receive any recompense for the trouble I had given.

On emerging from a ravine, we found we had overtaken a strong detachment of Turkish infantry, of about five hundred men, conducting with them nearly the same number of peasants. It appeared that they were on their way to Sofia, in Bulgaria, from a foray made on the unhappy Mussulman inhabitants of Bosnia, for the purpose of forcibly obtaining recruits to serve in the Nizam y Djedid. The recruiting party did not seem to have made any distinction, either as to age

or rank; the youth who had scarcely seen fifteen summers marched by the side of him over whom forty or fifty had passed; some were clad in the coarse woollen garments and sandals of the peasant, others in the braided crimson jacket and gay shalwar of the better classes. The refractory were tied together with ropes, like wild animals; and those who, in consequence of wounds or fatigue, had been allowed to ride, were tied on the backs of horses, to prevent their escape; the poor rayahs in silent discontent following their horses, which had been so summarily pressed into the service of the Sultan; the whole forming a melancholy exhibition of the tyrannical manner in which the recruiting system is conducted in Turkey, and showing how unpopular military service, à l'Européenne, must be with the people.

Georgy glanced hastily at his own well-fed, sleek konies (horses); and no doubt aware, from bitter experience, what might be their fate, quickly seized the rein of my horse, and made an attempt to retreat into the ravine behind us; but an eye, quicker than his, saw the movement, and divined the cause; when instantly, a moulasin (an ensign), with half-a-dozen ruffianlylooking soldiers, shot out from the ranks, and with a fierce roar, and their guns levelled at our heads, brought the stout Servian and his gospodin to a standstill.

A peremptory demand, made in the name of the Sultan, for the use of our horses, led to a violent altercation between the officer and Georgy, whose indignant