Miscellany: Slave Markets In Egypt

Ihere nre slave markets in the principal totvns of Eirvpt. In the centra] conrt, large bodies of ttláck sïaves, princijwily clii!(iren, ara crouched down tojrether. In 'the ordinary j apartmenls whic'i surround the convf, nre 1 young persons, mostly wofipe'n, tgi'd in the bot i ter apartménts white frmn]t sJayea for tlie hni rem;:. VlTanderiog abö'tit the streets i:i the neighborhood of the slave baz:irp, stroplinnr blacks are frequeijtly neen, sometimes in srnall g-roiips, sometimes solitary. Tliey are often prdmenadëd abóut by their owtiers. Tiie whole irnpreppioti to tbe hnbituai gazsr, to the habitual buyer and seüer }s, thnt llic traffic is of imite bea.sts, to be exnmined as other catilo, who óf themselves c.nn g-ivo no ooeount. . Thev aro made to wrajk, and BQraetirnes to run; tlioir arm.? are Jifted .arjO lowered to uscertain iluir fjlasticify; tlieir .musclf's are feit to eetimate lliir phirnpfos; their tóngues ore closelj scrutihized töjifdg'e of their henlth; they' nre birnéd tóund and round lo cxiiilul their symmetry. Young vo-" men are eaer toshow offtlieir pracop, &epecially whère the pur.chaser bas any thmg attr.-ctive in nis jiferian or appearance. The Abyssiariions felctí the highest prices; they are almosi all bougiit tbr pnrposes of sensnnlity, and their money value depends upon their personal attractions.In the slave market at Cairo, I have seldom seen less thnn from 100 to 2"0 slaves. I observed the old slaves "-enornüy sat apart, crouched on their haunches liko baboons, pre■setving a melancholy süence and fixing their .eyes npon the spectator withput any expres-jon of hope or fear, dfisire er passion, Thry sepmod to be siibdued to dipir tate, he it what ,it mijht, in sullen resignatiön, inoving about' lik curhed anri lr;r]ltd hor.scs at the wil! of their owners. Tlieboythe girls,lbe children slaves, appearpd gregftrious, somptimns engaged ín conversation . not wktiout ia:niy. iiaughter, andjoy. Xlieir eye,s turnea from one -visitor to anntlier with some curiosity; in thfim the sprints oflife wore still eparjiling in the bu(iyan.:y of'cbildliood, past suifering forgotten. and the unlicipalion of the morrow .more plensnnble tbaii paiuful. Tbc og'o of thpo yóuftgèr sirves avcraircd from 5-to 15. Amonfr tbem oneoiïon Bees faces distiügiiished from tlift e?i, i.ntëfej'ting, not to say faócinatingf; recular, not to spy beautiful. The ci"e:it ma=s of slnves are Nnbians; tbey have, ordinarily, scarcely any gannents when exposed fpr sale. The Abyssinian gi-is ornament tbeir liair wiih liells; niany are ofa liiglily intellcctual cast of conntenance, features finrly, sometimos exqnirtitely, wroúght. Tím difTrent races of slaves are (üsfinuishahle by tbeir countenance'a and by :!c tnánñér in which they bfar tliir lot. Tiioc who come from Sotidnn atrl Darfour nppenr jjeiidrallv rësigaed to their fa:r, nnd indifferent to whnt pas-es around them: tl e bharactPr of tbeir features undergoes iittíe changè; bnt amohg ihe Abyssiniins the strpng expresion of gloom and grief is oi'ff'R seen, their looks bawaying the sudden transitions frqm one emotion to another. T!vjy watch wit.'i curioiis oye the progressofthü bargaina of which they are the object. I have noiicod 6 dispositjon to appear nfrrepnble whéh tl1 bu ver presents a ■ voroblè idea to their mids, and a fepulsive expression when lie nquirer is unattmeti ve , to them. It is rarely tftat any thihg can lie lenrned of the personal bjstofy ofa slave vvlien Jie reaches the slavc market Sd'.'om do they speak any lang.oape in which they can communicáie oven with their owners; and thejellab himself iiear? so few inquiries made ad to the manner in which he becaine pos?espd of the slave, po lii'.'o intérest is feit by the ordi nnry buyer in the story ofihe neojro he purchases, that there is littie motive for the dealer to inform hiniüclf about it. and by the time the of the country, Turliish or Arabic, is learned by the slave, the mernory of bis own coUoiry hns ofien passed avvay.IN o telling of ríewcncy for the teníale suaves evcr spnnis to pnter info the miiul of' t 'e je!lab. Whcn I haye.gona into the sl.ive i kets the rags wrnpped round the young wonQn wr re removed by íhc sin ve dealers, and I have frpquently seen the gids vpil their faces jvith their gpmnntfi vvliilo the rost of tf;c ir botlios wo3 nncovered. IIy uttention wns once piuticuliirly excited by un Abyséiñian, who wus prpba'-ly runo or !en yeurs o]d, wbqse features wltp reallv beautifuK&nd wlioe vv'bole appearance, Iholigli nutlii: but a fijthy i ■ of black, calicó hiing from bèr lir;(! over hor slioulderK, wns réóiatkablv tóv graco and oven ig]ity. I could uut but ñmey she mu-a have i.belonjrcd to the bigber classes oFhBr.imUön; and be loolicd nt meso implorinn-ly tbat I féít strorigly tèmptefi to viola1 e the iriw nnd heneóme lier purchaeer, but certainly v;th no óth er object tban to instruct licr and b?e hor freedom. Reflecfion, hówever, convinced me rthat the prohibiti'n (by the English g-overnmoin?) ío buy, even for the pürp(èe nf eñiíncipation, or for any other purposo, however beneviIut] is wiot; íi:r liinnane, us tlie presonre of t lie buyer is the encourajrenient of the peller; and wcre thebuyer, under any circumBtance, Ranctióned by our Legislatuie, ihe door would be openvd to boniuüess and uncoifcontroüublo nbuses. The long black Jiair of the Ábys'sinian girl hungin-long1 aud benntifnl . curls over her brehead nnd down lier neck, and amonj the locks stnall white shells wero suspeniietl. -When I stopjied fora moment to graze ot her, the jellab removed the ra wliich v as suspended troni her shonlder, and sbe slood perfpctly nakod before me. Stip- posing I wished to buy, he aslcd me L000 piostres, but, as I did not show ntiy eagerness to purchase, he lowered his price gtadually to 1000 - $50. This girl was not black, but of a brown hue; her features regular, her eyes of 6parkiing brightness, and there seemed about her an air of patient piety which forced tears 'ofsympathy into my oyes. She too was ol I the ChrisUan race. - Dr. Boioring. "It is Vui.gar." - The followinjr is extraöted from Lockhart's Life of'Sir Walter Scott. "Lest I should forget to tnention it, I put down here a rebukc wbich, later in )i(e, Sir Walt er pave in my hearing to lus daughter Anfe. She happeneci to say of somclh'n, I wliat, that Phe coulr! not abide t - It was vulgar. 'My love' said her fatlier, 'you speak like very younor lady; do yo know, after nü, the tuëajiblg of tliis word vulgar? - 'Tis onlv annmon - notliinpf that is commoii except wickedneP8, can de.-erve to be spoken n a tone of consempt; and when you liave liyed to my years, you will be disposed to no-rpe wt nie in thanking God that riothing reiillv worth having or canng about in tliiö world, !? uncortmon.