CHAP. among the number of his prisoners. Having sent for this man, he made known his intentions

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a regular road to the Convent on its summit. In the beginning of the ascent, we observed a sort of grotto excavated in the rock. On the point immediately above the sea, are the remains of a well-built Monastery, which, since the appearance of the French in these countries, has been entirely destroyed by the Turks. Below this there is a smaller Convent. It is inhabited by a Turk, and its church has been converted into a mosque it is excavated from out of the solid rock; being about fifty feet long, twenty-five feet wide, and twenty feet in height. On our return to Caiffa, along the sea-shore, at the foot of the mountain, we observed a range of Catacombs in the rock, which had probably been the burying-place of an antient town in the neighbourhood: on the floor of these Catacombs were cavities for the reception of bodies. Near this place is a tower of masonry, with five embrasures in the lower part, for the defence of the anchorage: at present, no guns are mounted there.

Caiffa itself is a miserable village, close to the sea-side, and opposite to Acre: it is of an oblong figure; its longest side, parallel to the sea, being about two hundred yards; and its shortest, one hundred and fifty yards in length. It is completely enclosed by a stone wall about fifteen feet high, with square towers at the angles. On a small eminence immediately above the town, and completely commanding it, is a square tower, which, as well as the towers of Caiffa itself, has been dismantled of its guns by the Pasha of Acre, since the arrival of the French in Syria. From the summit of Mount Carmel the view of the Bay of Caiffa was picturesque in the extreme. On the opposite side was Acre; and beyond, the towering heights of the Anti-Lebanon, with a small chain of mountains intervening, which seemed to retire and lose themselves in the interior of the country. Bordering on the bay appeared an extensive plain, with the river Kishon meandering through the middle of it. From the roof of the Convent on the summit of Mount Carmel, Acre bore N. E. by N. distant seven miles; Mount Saphet, E. and by N. distant fifteen miles; a town on a projecting point on the coast, s. s. w. distant four miles. Mount Carmel consists of hard limestone, varied sometimes by thin strata of flint."

On the 12th of April, Colonel Squire sailed from Caiffa for Acre. His Journal then continues.

"Wind E. S. E. light breezes. At half past six A.M. weigh anchor;

to him, telling him, at the same time, that he CHAP. would never enjoy a peaceful dominion while

and at half past seven, bring-to at the entrance of the harbour of ACRE. A boat came from the town, which undertook to bring the vessel into the harbour. Our pilot, it appeared, was a sort of harbourmaster, and has constantly twenty men employed for his assistance. As soon as the vessel was moored, the Captain of the port stripped himself, made a dive under the vessel's bottom, and told us there were four feet of water between the keel and the anchoring ground. The man was extremely old: and we were surprised at his activity and attention: however, upon inquiry, he said, that he obeyed the orders of Djezzar, who would immediately take off his head should an accident happen to any ships moored in the harbour of Acre. After a salute of thirteen guns, which was returned by Djezzar's batteries, we landed, with a view to pay our compliments to the Pasha. Djezzar was sitting in a small apartment at the farther extremity of a court in the upper floor of the Seraglio. The court was planted with orange and lemon trees, and other shrubs; and one side was occupied by the Charem.

"Djezzar received us in a very gracious manner; saying, that he had always loved the English, because they were a brave nation; and seemed to insinuate that his friendship was perfectly disinterested; that he was independent of all; that he had plenty of guns and troops of his own; in short, that he was able to defend himself without the assistance of others. When we inquired with respect to the march of the Vizier through Syria, and his return from Egypt to Constantinople, he replied, "I know not which way he is gone; they say he 'is now at Damascus; he will scarcely leave a beard or mustachio in 'any town that he passes through. When he was at Caïro, he 'desired me to send timber for his army: my reply was, I am not a 'seller of wood.' So that Djezzar fully explained his situation and his politics; continually launching forth in his own praises; at the same time that he abused the Vizier and his creatures. The Vizier (said he) has rich dresses and precious ornaments in abundance; but he 'carries all his wealth on his person. I am a Bosniac, a rough unpo❝lished soldier, not accustomed to courts and politeness, but bred in camps and in the field. I have no handsome pelisses nor fine 'shawls my troops, however, are well paid, and numerous. I am 'expert (added he) in the management of a sabre: with a single 'stroke of my sword, I have cut in two the barrel of a musket.'

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CHAP. certain of the princes of the country existed.

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These men were then living as hostages, in

" Djezzar sat in the upper corner of the apartment: close to his hand was a four-barrelled pistol, very richly mounted; behind him were two muskets, a sabre, and an axe; a silver spitting-cup was in his left hand; and in another part of the room, a drinking-mag of wood, made by himself, and always kept in the apartment: the ceiling was ornamented with landscape-painting of his own invention. The Divan (the part raised a few inches above the floor) was covered with a thin common carpet; the other part of the chamber with a mat. Djezzar leans on a low crutch, placed under his right arm, which he said he had always used instead of the fine downy cushions of the rich and indolent. He was dressed in an old darned pelisse, with blue cloth trousers, in the Turkish style; and a red shawl on his head as a turban. He remarked, that he was sleeping when we fired our salute; that he had been rather unwell; that the report of the guns awoke him, and that the grateful sound had revived him from his indisposition.

"Djezzar may be between seventy and eighty years of age: he has lost the greater part of his teeth, has a respectable grey beard, and a prominent nose; and though, when he smiles, he may impose upon one the appearance of good nature, the ordinary cast of his countenance, with his wrinkled brow, sufficiently denotes his well-known familiarity with conspiracies and assassination. After taking our leave, we visited the fortifications of Acre, towards the land, with the Dragoman of Djezzar; who pointed out to us the position of the French camp, and the different points against which the attack was directed. The camp was in the plain, about two miles south-east from the town, extending itself, from the sea, as far as the remains of a church near the aqueduct which once conveyed water to Acre. Part of this building was destroyed by Buonaparte: that part which was near the town has been levelled by Djezzar since the departure of the French, that he might render the defences of his works as open and clear as possible. With the same view he has levelled most of the trees in the neighbourhood." [N.B. Here Col. Squire enters into a very detailed account of the fortifications of Acre.]

"The Mosque, built by Djezzar about fifteen years ago, has a large dome, and both outside and within is very richly ornamented. We

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Djezzar's power. "You will not like to begin CHAP. your reign," said he, "by slaughtering them;

observed in the walls large pieces of Verd-antique, and specimens of many different kinds of marble: the ornaments within are light, and painted in very gay colours: the whole building has more the appearance of a fine theatre, than a place for devotion. We were not permitted to ascend the minaret: here it is the office of a blind person to call the people to prayers, that there may be no opportunity from this elevated situation to observe the women in the Pasha's Charem. Before being admitted into the Mosque, we were obliged to purchase thin slippers, and wear them as a mark of respect, leaving our boots at the entrance. The court of the Mosque, in the centre of which is a neat fountain, and a small plantation of palm and cypress trees, is surrounded by a sort of cloister, and small apartments, in which are deposited the books of Djezzar. These also serve as lodging places for the chief people of the law. Under the Mosque is a large reservoir for water; and we were informed, that, at present, a ten years' supply of water for the town is collected in the different cisterns. Without the gate of the Mosque, and opposite to the entrance of the Seraglio, is a handsome fountain, with basins of white marble, and furnished with drinking cups, very convenient for the inhabitants. Since the campaign of the French in Syria, the fortifications of Acre have been repaired, and considerably increased: those which have been added are much more substantial than the old; the masonry, though not finely wrought, is solid and well executed; the stones which compose it are taken from the walls and foundations of the ancient Ptolemaïs. The whole of the ramparts are surmounted with a sort of battlement, which Djezzar told us was very useful when the enemy mounted to the assault: for these stones, being loosened, were tumbled down upon the French, and occasioned very great confusion. When the French besieged Acre, their attack was directed on the Bourge Ali, at the north-east angle; and the besiegers took advantage of irregularities in the ground, of the garden walls, and of a small ravine, and more particularly of the remains of an aqueduct which once conveyed water to Acre.-Djezzar, profiting by this experience, has entirely levelled the aqueduct near the town, and is determined that, for the future, the enemy shall not have the smallest shelter.

"The Bay of Acre, or Caiffa, is seven miles in width, and perhaps a

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CHAP. I will do that business for you :" accordingly, he ordered them to be brought before him, and

league and a half in length; the sweep is nearly semicircular: the soundings, in general, ten or eleven fathoms; and the holding-ground near the village Caiffa, on the south side, excellent.

"A low sandy ridge, projecting from the south point of the bay, forms a secure roadstead abreast of Caiffa, and is always preferred. Two small streams discharge themselves into the Bay of Acre: one about a mile east of Caiffa, supposed to be the Kishon of the Sacred Scripture: the second, called the River of Acre, discharges itself into the sea, perhaps a mile and a half from the town. This stream is shallow, inconsiderable, and frequently changes its direction. The beach of the bay does not seem convenient for landing, being much exposed to the westerly winds, flat and shallow, with a continual surf. "April the 13th. Soon after breakfast we visited Djezzar, who was very talkative, and showed us several specimens of his ingenuity: he cut out, in our presence, a gun, in paper, with a pair of scissars ; told us he was a great adept at this art, and would let us see his performances: these consisted of vases and flowers, very neatly cut, and adorned with different inscriptions from the Koran, and had been further decorated by a painter in the town: he also showed us the model of a powder-mill to be worked by horses, of his own invention. When we made him a compliment on the gallant defence of Acre, by himself and Sir Sidney Smith,-Ah! (replied he) all events are from God. Fate has always favoured Djezzar; and confident in my own " strength and means, I never feared Buonaparte. Nor do I care for the Vizier when he marched through this part of Syria, he did not 'dare to approach Acre; for he knew I was well able to receive him.' "After having taken our leave, we wished to visit the fortifications towards the sea: we were however told, that it would be better to walk without the town; for Djezzar could not be responsible for our safety within, as it was the time of a festival (the Kourban Beiram, the sacrifice of lambs), during which the soldiers fire their pistols continually (always with ball), and perhaps some accident might befal us. Mr. Hamilton returned to Djezzar, to make some diplomatic arrangements; while Major Leake and myself took a walk on the north side of the fortifications.

"Djezzar's Dragoman (Bertocini, a Genoese) informed us, that thirteen years ago, on account of a suspected conspiracy between his