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■GII BLAS. 2*

fhaped, very polite, and for a Turk, mighty gallant. His chief favourite was a Cachemirian * woman, ■who, by her underftanding and beauty, had acquired an abfolute dominion over him.—He loved her even to adoration, and treated her every day with fome entertainment or other; fometimes with a concert of vocal and inftrumental mufick, and fometimes with a comedy in the Turkifh taite : that is to fay, a dramatic poem, in which modefty and decorum was as little regarded as t thc rules of Aiiftotle. The favourite, vdiofe name was Farrukhnaz, was paflionately fond of thefe diverfions, and even made her women fome­times reprefent Arabian pieces before'thc dey ; where­in fhe herfelf played a part, and charmed all the fpec- tators by the grace and vivacity of her a&ion. I be­ing one day among the muficians at a reprefentation of this kind, Solyman oidercd me to play upon the guitar, and fing alone between the a£ls. I had the good lortune to pleafe, was very much applauded, - and the favourite feemed to look upon me with a fa­vourable eye.

The very next day, while Iwasbufied in-watering.: the orange-trees in the garden, an eunuch palling by me, without flopping or fpeaking one word, dropt f>illet at my feet: I took it up in a confuhon made up of fear and joy.—I lay down upon the ground, that I might not be feen from the windows of the ft- raglio; and concealing myfelf behind the boxes in which the orange-trees were planted, opened the let­ter, in which I found a pretty valuable diamond, and thefe words iu good Caftilian :

tl Young Chriftian, thank heaven for thy captivity. •—Love and fortune will make thee happy : love, if thou art fenfible to the charms of a beautiful woman ;

H

f * Cachemire is a country under the dominion of * the great Mogul, called the Indian paradife; remark- JMe fur the beauty and wit of its women, t and