" I had told him of the circumstances
under which I had met the resident, (coming from Bagdad,) and that there
were three cases of plague on board. The Armenian, whose only notions
regarding _cases_ were acquired in the course of his mercantile
transactions, and who believed a plague case and a six dozen champagne
case to be much about the same article, ejaculated, "Three _cases_ of
plague! Merciful heavens!--if the major wanted to preserve such
abominable virus, could he not have brought a smaller quantity? Three
cases! If it _should_ run out, how it might spread about the town!"
(The "divinity" of the sheikh of the Chabeans is worth record. He was
pleased with Mr. Stocqueler's medical zeal, and more so with a box of
ointment which he laid "at his feet as a certain remedy for the
_impaired vision_ of his left eye. He had been stone blind from his
childhood, but he held it disrespectful to be told so."
The levee of the sheikh of Fellahi is amusing.)
He was in a spacious veranda in front of his harem, looking out on the
palace court, above which it was raised for about three feet. Three or
four beautiful hawks were perched near the sheikh, and he was patting a
couple of favourite greyhounds.
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