to avoid shocking his prejudices; and though he must have suspected me,-for the general report was, that an Englishman, disguised as a Persian, had performed the pilgrimage, measured the country, and sketched the buildings,-he had the gentlemanly feeling never to allude to the past.  We parted, when I went to India, on the best of terms. [FN#6] Munkati’a-one cut off (from the pleasures and comforts of life).  In Al-Hijaz, as in England, any allusion to poverty is highly offensive. [FN#7] The Koran expressly forbids a Moslem to discredit the word of any man who professes his belief in the Saving Faith.  The greatest offence of the Wahhabis is their habit of designating all Moslems that belong to any but their own sect by the opprobrious name of Kafirs or infidels.  This, however, is only the Koranic precept; in practice a much less trustful spirit prevails. [FN#8] Towards the end of the season, poor pilgrims are forwarded gratis, by order of government.  But, to make such liberality as inexpensive as possible, the Pasha compels ship-owners to carry one pilgrim per 9 ardebs (about 5 bushels each), in small, and 1 per 11 in large vessels. [FN#9] I was informed by a Prussian gentleman, holding an official appointment under His Highness the Pasha, at Cairo, that 300,000 ardebs of grain were annually exported from Kusayr to Jeddah.  The rest is brought down the Nile for consumption in Lower Egypt, and export to Europe. [FN#10] The account here offered to the reader was kindly supplied to me by Henry Levick, Esq. (late Vice-Consul, and afterwards Post-master at Suez), and it may be depended upon, as coming from a resident of 16 years’ standing.  All the passages marked with inverted commas are extracts from a letter with which that gentleman favoured me.  The information is obsolete now, but it may be interesting as a specimen of the things that were. [FN#11] The rate of freight is at present (1853) about forty shillings per ton-very near the same paid by the P. and O. Company for coals carried from Newcastle via the Cape to Suez.  Were the “Farzah” abolished, freight to Jeddah would speedily fall to 15 or 16 shillings per ton.  Passengers from Suez to Jeddah are sometimes charged as much as 6 or even 8 dollars for standing room-personal baggage forming another pretext for extortion-and the higher orders of pilgrims, occupying a small portion of the cabin, pay about 12 dollars.  These first and second class fares would speedily be reduced, by abolishing protection, to 3 and 6 dollars.  Note to Second Edition.-The “Farzah,” I may here observe, has been abolished by Sa’id Pasha since the publication of these lines:  the effects of “free trade” are exactly what were predicted by Mr. Levick. [FN#12] The principal trade from Suez is to Jeddah, Kusayr supplying Yambu’.  The latter place, however, imports from Suez wheat, beans, cheese, biscuit, and other provisions for return pilgrims. [FN#13] My friends were strenuous in their exertions for me to make interest with Mr. West.