tured but much-neglected
lads of fourteen or fifteen years, who seemed particularly partial
to the society of the sailors, and were always talking, playing, or
quarrelling with them. The remainder of the company consisted of a
rich Arab family, with several male and female negro slaves, and a
few very poor people. And in such society I was to pass a weary
time. Many will say that this was a good opportunity for obtaining
an insight into the customs and behaviour of these people; but I
would gladly have declined the opportunity, for it requires an
almost angelic patience to bear such a complication of evils with
equanimity. Among the Arabs and the lower class of Greeks,
moreover, every thing possessed by one member of the community is
looked upon as public property. A knife, a pair of scissors, a
drinking-glass, or any other small article, is taken from its owner
without permission, and is given back after use without being
cleaned. On the mat, the carpet, or the mattress, which you have
brought on board as bedding, a negro and his master will lie down;
and wherever a vacant space is left, some one is sure to stand or
lie down. Take what precautions you may, it is impossible to avoid
having your person and garments infested by certain very disgusting
parasitical creatures. One day I cleaned my teeth with a
toothbrush; one of the Greek sailors, noticing what I was about,
came towards me, and when I laid the brush down for an instant, took
it up. I thought he only wished to examine it; but no, he did
exactly as I had done, and after cleaning his teeth returned me my
brush, expressing himself entirely satisfied with it.

The diet on board a vessel of this kind is also exceedingly bad.
For dinner we have pilau, stale cheese, and onions; in the evening,
we get anchovies, olives, stale cheese again, and ship-biscuit
instead of bread. These appetising dishes are placed in a tray on
the ground, round which the captains (of whom there are frequently
two or three), the mate, and those passengers who have not come
furnished with provisions of their own, take their places. I did
not take part in these entertainments; for I had brought a few live
fowls, besides some rice, butter, dried bread, and coffee, and
prepared my own meals. The voyage in one of these agreeable ships
is certainly not very dear, if we do not take the discomforts and
privations into account; but these I can really not estimate at too
high a price.