Travels In Arabia | Page 6

me to find the means of procuring subsistence until my
funds should arrive. Had I been disappointed in all my hopes, I should
then have followed the example of numbers of the poor Hadjis, even
those of respectable families, who earn a daily subsistence, during their
stay in the Hedjaz, by manual labour; but before I resorted to this last
expedient, I thought I might try another. I had indeed brought with me
a letter of introduction from Seyd Mohammed el Mahrouky, [The
original characters of these and other names, both of persons and places,
are given in the Index of Arabic words at the end of this volume.] the
first merchant
[p.4] in Cairo, to Araby Djeylany, the richest merchant of Djidda; but
this I knew could be of no use, as it was not a letter of credit; and I did
not present it. [I afterwards became acquainted with Djeylany, at
Mekka; and what I saw of him, convinced me that I was not mistaken
in the estimation I had formed of his readiness to assist a stranger.] I
determined therefore, at last, to address the Pasha, Mohammed Aly, in
person. He had arrived in the Hedjaz at the close of the spring of 1813,
and was now resident at Tayf, where he had established the
head-quarters of the army, with which he intended to attack the
strongholds of the Wahabis. I had seen the Pasha several times at Cairo,
before my departure for Upper Egypt; and had informed him in general
terms of my travelling madness (as he afterwards jocularly termed it
himself at Tayf). I should here observe that, as the merchants of Upper
Egypt are in general poor, and none of them strictly honour a bill or
obligation by immediate payment, I had found it necessary, during my
stay there, in order to obtain a supply of money, to request my
correspondent at Cairo to pay the sum which I wanted into the Pasha’s
treasury, and to take an order from him upon his son, Ibrahim Pasha,
then governor of Upper Egypt, to repay me the amount. Having
therefore already had some money dealings with the Pasha, I thought
that, without being guilty of too much effrontery, I might now

endeavour to renew them in the Hedjaz, and the more so, as I knew that
he had formerly expressed rather a favourable opinion of my person
and pursuits. As soon, therefore, as the violence of my fever had
subsided, I wrote to his physician, an Armenian of the name of Bosari,
whom I had also known at Cairo, where I had heard much in his favour,
and who was then with his master at Tayf. I begged him to represent
my unfortunate situation to the Pasha, to inform him that my letter of
credit upon Djidda had not been honoured, and to ask him whether he
would accept a bill upon
[p.5] my correspondent at Cairo, and order his treasurer at Djidda to
pay the amount of it.
Although Tayf is only five days distant from Djidda, yet the state of the
country was such, that private travellers seldom ventured to cross the
mountains between Mekka and Tayf; and caravans, which carried the
letters of the people of the country, departed only at intervals of from
eight to ten days; I could not, therefore, expect an answer to my letter
in less than twenty days. During this period I passed my leisure hours at
Djidda, in transcribing the journal of my travels in Nubia; but I felt the
heat at this season so oppressive, especially in my weak state, that,
except during a few hours early in the morning, I found no ease but in
the cool shade of the great gateway of the Khan in which I lodged;
where I passed the greater part of the day, stretched upon a stone bench.
Bosari’s correspondent at Djidda, through whom I had sent my letter to
Tayf, had meanwhile mentioned my name to Yahya Effendi, the
physician of Tousoun Pasha, son of Mohammed Aly, now governor of
Djidda, who had been in Upper Egypt while I was there, but I had not
seen him. This physician, when at Cairo, had heard my name
mentioned as that of a traveller; and understanding now, that I came
from the Black countries, he was curious to see me, and desired
Bosari’s friend to introduce me to him. He received me politely, invited
me repeatedly to his house, and, in the course of further explanation,
became acquainted with my wants, and the steps I had taken to relieve
them. He happened at this time to be preparing for a journey to Medina
with Tousoun Pasha, and was sending back all his unnecessary baggage
to Cairo; with this he was also desirous