were they to let themselves alone, but Turkish taste requires these
appliances, and an unpainted woman is a rarity.

It is an Eastern saying that a woman should be a load for a camel, and
in deference to this taste they fatten themselves up until they become
mountains of flesh. Where obesity is considered a charm, delicacy of
outline ceases to be regarded, and a woman who has not rotundity is
regarded as an unfortunate being. They are decidedly the greatest
collection of well-fed females to be seen in the world.

The task of the black guards who accompany these houris is anything
but a sinecure, and "nods and becks and wreathed smiles" are freely
bestowed on the male passers-by in spite of etiquette and eunuchs. If
the scandalous chronicles of the coffee-shops and bazaars are to
be relied upon, "Love laughs at locksmiths" here as well as in more
civilized lands, and Danger and Opportunity wink at each other. There
is far less decorum and outward reserve of manner here than in our
parks, but this freedom is all confined to looks and gestures, access
and converse being both forbidden.

Frequently, however, the bad-tempered guardians of the hareem commit
outrages on the persons of real or supposed aggressors in this way,
and from these even members of the foreign embassies have not always
been exempt. The difficulty of identifying the offender in such cases
enhances the impunity of these wretches, for to arrest one on the spot
would be impossible in the midst of a crowd which sympathizes with
the offender, instead of the sufferer, and looks upon it as a proper
punishment for the insolent Giaour. A private person unconnected with
an embassy has still less chance for satisfaction, but must pocket the
affront, even if smitten by whip or flat of sabre, considering himself