occasions; even then they are not permitted to see their patients, except through gauze. Notwithstanding all these precautions, intrigues are sometimes successfully carried on. If discovered, the woman is tied up in a sack and drowned; but the Koran ordains that he who accuses a woman without being able to prove her guilt, shall receive the bastinado.

The mother of the reigning Sultan is called sultana valydeh; a title which she assumes at his accession, and loses whenever he dies, or is deposed. Her sons treat her with the most unbounded respect, and give her almost supreme control in the harem. Her political influence is likewise by no means inconsiderable. The grand seignior often communicates to her the secrets of state; covered with a veil, she holds conferences with the grand vizier and the mufti; and in the absence of her son, she issues orders in his name. In the time of Achmet III., the sultana valydeh warmly espoused the cause of Charles XII. of Sweden, and made great exertions to arm Turkey against Russia, in his behalf. She even wrote letters to the king of Sweden, and to count Poniatowski, though such a step was in open defiance of the laws of the harem. The revenues of certain provinces belong to the sultana mother, and in times of emergency she often lends large sums to his Highness.

The sultana valydeh and the sultana hasseki almost always dislike each other, because each is jealous of the other's influence over the reigning inonarch. The hasseki finds it prudent to dissemble

her hatred, for fear of giving offence to the Sultan ; and the valydeh on her part, while she refrains from openly wounding the affections of her imperious son, generally contrives all manner of secret and indirect means to injure his favorite. It sometimes happens, however, that the hasseki is so perfectly passive and submissive as to be a favorite both with mother and son.

If the heir apparent dies, the hasseki loses her rank, and the next khatoun who has a son takes her place.

This gives rise to the strongest feelings of rivalship, envy, and hatred. No pains are spared by the khatouns to destroy the offspring, injure the health, or vex the feelings of those odahlycs in whom they are fearful of finding rivals.

The sultana Guneche (a name which signifies the sun) had acquired great influence over Mohammed IV. by her beauty, excellent understanding, and perpetual flow of spirits. In the height of her power, the sultana mother was malicious enough to introduce to her son a lovely Circassian slave, named Gulbeyaz, or the white rose. The effect produced upon the mind of the voluptuous monarch was precisely what she wished: Guneche soon received intimation that apartments and a sultana's train were in preparationfor the new favorite. She stole to the chamber of her rival, and after loading her with the bitterest invectives, beat her so cruelly that the whole harem was in an uproar. The Sultan provided Gulbeyaz with another residence six leagues distant, and

threatened to treat Guneche as a slave.

She, how

ever, made her peace with him, by attributing her rash conduct to excess of love, and expressing her determination in future to sacrifice her own feelings to the gratification of her lion, as the sultanas fondly call his Highness.

But afterward her jealousy showed itself in a still worse form. The Sultan had received from the grand vizier a most beautiful slave, named Khadyjeh. With a view to her safety, he conveyed her to a seraglio on the canal of the Black sea. For a time Guneche appeared to have no suspicion of the frequent visits he paid her. But one day when the grand seignior had gone a hunting some distance from Constantinople, she ordered caïques to be secretly prepared for an excursion on the canal. On her arrival at the seraglio where Khadyjeh was confined, she affected to wish to enter the pavilion to rest. The new favorite was engaged in the innocent amusement of angling, in a closet that overhung the sea. Her vindictive rival came softly behind her, and suddenly pushed her into the waves, from which she

rose no more.

The heir to the throne remains under the tuition of his mother until he is eight or nine years old, and custom, as well as the rules of the Koran, require from him the most implicit and reverential obedience. The day on which this important little personage is delivered over to male instructers is celebrated with great pomp. A recent traveller thus describes the ceremonies that took place when the oldest son of

Sultan Mahmoud was nearly nine years old: "The extensive plain of Ibraham Aga, on the Asiatic shore, was covered with tents for the accommodation of troops of children, of whom six thousand were presert. The Sultan was seated on a throne in a splendid pavilion, supported by gilded columns, hung with gold and silver tissue. The young prince was introduced to all the chief officers of the empire, and after respectfully embracing his father's feet he took his seat on a cushion near him. A chapter from the Koran was read, and a prayer pronounced by the grand mufti. At every pause all the children throughout the camp cried Amen, and it was echoed by the neighboring hills. Food is distributed and criminals pardoned in honor of the occasion. The festival lasts three days; and during all this time, men, women, and children remain in the field. troops, the long line of tents, the noisy children, and women in all manner of gay costumes, riding in their painted and carved arabahs, drawn by oxen, combine to make the scene very cheerful and exhilarating."

The

In many instances the Sultans, when they ascended the throne, have caused all their brothers to be put to death, to prevent any disputes about succession. Amurat III. caused his five brothers to be killed in the presence of their own mothers, one of whom, unable to endure the sight, stabbed herself in despair. He likewise put to death two of his father's slaves, who were likely to become mothers. Mohammed III., son and successor of Amurat, caused

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nineteen brothers to be strangled, and ten of his father's odahlycs to be thrown into the sea, for the

sarne reason.

The khatouns occasionally make each other a ceremonious visit, probably from motives of curiosity; but their meals, baths, and amusements, are distinct from each other. They change their dresses many times a day, smoke, chew gum mastic, and loll on sofas, while female slaves dance around them, and perform pantomimes, which almost always represent love scenes. They have likewise magic lanterns and puppet shows, the subjects of which are said to be any thing but modest. One of their favorite occupations is making beads of rose leaves. The petals of the rose are carefully picked, and pounded into a smooth paste in an iron vessel. The iron, acting upon a certain acid in the rose, turns the paste quite black. It is made into little balls, which are perforated for stringing, and hung up in the shade to dry. When hard they are rubbed between the hands with a little attar of rose, till they become perfectly smooth. They never lose their fragrance. The Turkish ladies spend hours in passing these beads backward and forward on a string, inhaling the delicate perfume. They practise dancing, music, and embroidery, in the cool kiosks or pavilions, situated in the midst of the gardens. Here Frank and Greek women are sometimes admitted to exhibit goods and jewelry for sale, and Jewesses skilled in fortune-telling, amulets, and love-potions, are always welcome. A visit from any lady of distinction, either from a