e Sultan built a theatre, and had a corps of ballet-girls for
private amusement. He frequently gave entertainments at the former to
the foreign legations, and one season even attended a _bal pare_ at the
British Embassy, and a _bal en ordinaire_ at the French. This rather
startled some of his subjects; but as such things were considered _a la
Franka_, it passed over without any serious results. At the former, it
is said, an amusing incident occurred, which, if not altogether true,
is _bon troveto_. The late Sultan was extremely sensitive about coming
in close contact with non-believers in the principles of the blessed
Prophet. He never could touch the letter accrediting a foreign
ambassador without hastening to perform ablutions, and as to conforming
to the custom of shaking hands with an infidel, it was too horrible to
be thought of for a moment. All animals, except horses, he held in
abhorrence, and changed his entire costume several times a day, if he
happened to have occasion to expose himself even to the winds blowing
from the direction of the infidel hill on which Pera, the residences of
the Christians, are built. On his arrival at the ball in question, he
was, as is customary, shown into a private apartment, for a moment's
repose previous to entering the salon in which hundreds of gay visitors
were collected. The apartment happened to be that of the lady of the
Ambassador, in fact, her _boudoir_, in which her poodle-dog, _Bijou_,
had been accustomed to stay. Scarcely had the Sultan taken a seat,
before poor Bijou made his appearance, and was at once driven away by
some of the frightened attendants; but soon after returning unnoticed,
the spiteful brute approached the Sultan, and offered the greatest
indignity in his power to the pantaloons of the sensitive monarch.
Imagine the indignation which occurred, and the designs of the wily
British Ambassador to civilize the Turkish Sultan would have been wholly
frustrated had not the chief gardien of the Sultan's wardrobe
fortunately brought with him a full fresh suit for his master, in case
of eventualities.

On the same occasion, the British Ambassador, for the same laudable
purpose of civilizing the various clergy of the Ottoman capital, had
insisted upon the Armenian, Greek, and Catholic Armenian Bishops and the
Greek Rabbi of the Jews appearing at his _bal pare_ in their canonicals!
Against this they strongly remonstrated, but the influence of the
Ambassador was gre