ath, which formed one of the ancient
mysteries of Egypt. The chief of the fakeers met me in the portico,
and cordially shook hands with me, calling me his brother. At this
time there was a rumour that Bonaparte was preparing to invade the
country; and indeed he had intimated as much, the English were
therefore courted; it was even hoped and expected by the emperor
that they would in such an event become his allies, and give him
succour. The next morning, I gave the fakeer some wax candles
accompanied with observations emblematical of the present, which
was so favourably received, that no less than nine saints
prostrated themselves at the place of prayer, which is at the
entrance of the town, as I passed out to pursue my journey,
uttering with audible voices a (_fatha_) prayer of benediction,
invoking on me the protection of Almighty God, and a blessing on
the English nation; also that God would avert every danger from the
embassy, and restore them in safety to their native land. I am
120 perfectly aware that, in recording this extraordinary circumstance,
persons who have visited this country, and have remarked the
rancour that generally exists with the lower orders against
Christians, may doubt my veracity, so unprecedented a circumstance
it is for a Christian to be admitted into a _Horem_! the most
respected also and the most sacred in the empire! My answer to such
is, that the circumstance is so incredible, that I should not have
presumed to lay it before the British public, if I had not two most
respectable witnesses, _now living_ in West Barbary, who can and
will corroborate my report; these two men are Bel Hage, a Muselman,
who had been the prince's cook, and who officiated as mine during
the journey, and Muhamed, commonly called Deeb, of Diabet, a
village near Mogodor, the same man whose dexterity Aly Bey, in his
travels, alludes to, when he shot a fish in the river near Mogodor.

[Footnote 114: The town, in the centre of which stands the
sanctuary, contains about 5000 inhabitants.]

Half an hour's journey after leaving the sanctuary of Muley Dris
Zerone, and at the foot of Atlas, I perceived to the left of the
road magnificent and massive ruins; the country for miles around is
covered with broken columns of white marble, the ruins appear