The style of conversation amongst a people is generally found to be a good criterion of their literature; and as I have before observed, that of Ioannina, though superior to what is met with in the rest of Greece, is not much distinguished for brilliancy and flow of soul. We certainly met with many persons who had improved their manners by an inspection of foreign countries, as well as their faculties by the acqui

* I have neither time nor inclination to enter into a long discussion respecting the origin and progress of the Romaic language and literature: neither could I add much to the copious account already given by Col. Leake in his Researches in Greece,' a work which is well worth the attention of all who intend to prosecute inquiries in this branch of literature, or who are desirous of travelling in Greece with advantage. I think however that the modern dialect, or Romaic, might easily be shewn to have been chiefly formed from the writings of ecclesiastics, and the text of the New Testament: numberless terms for the common articles of life are derived from that source, where indeed very near approaches are found to the Romaic infinitive, and to the use of the auxiliary verbs; besides numerous examples of Latin and other foreign words, Grecized and incorporated into the new dialect by a mere literal change. With regard to the present confusion of accent and quantity, or the way in which the ancients themselves distinguished them, I know nothing about the subject, and never met with any person who did.

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sition of modern languages and some few other accomplishments; but we neither saw nor heard of any that were noted for attainments beyond mediocrity: we found some who had gained a smattering of philosophy, falsely so called, and who had paid very dear for it by acquiring a scepticism on more serious subjects. Upon the whole therefore, the chief interest in the society of Ioannina is derived from novelty, and when this wears off, nothing succeeds to relieve its monotony, agitate the stagnant ideas, and occupy the faculties of a reflective being; no musical or theatrical exhibitions, no exhibitions of the fine arts, no political discussion, no courts of law, not even a new book or a pamphlet; for neither a printing press nor a bookseller's shop is to be found in this capital *.

For the sake of variety we sometimes paid visits of ceremony to some of the Turkish beys and agàs, by whom we were invariably received with urbanity and politeness. We generally found the master of the house seated, according to custom, at the corner of his divan, dressed in that rich oriental garb, whose graceful folds confine, without disfiguring the limbs: pipes and coffee, sherbet and sweetmeats, were always introduced as a matter of course, and the conversation, though. it might not be enlivened by that play of fancy in which its greatest charm consists, was frequently rendered interesting by the sensible and acute observations of our dignified host.

The Turk, though he applies neither to philosophy nor science, is well versed in the knowledge of the human heart, inasmuch as he studies men much more than books, and he frequently displays a perspicacity of intellect, which, with due cultivation, might enable him to shine a distinguished ornament of society. The most insuperable obstacle to his progress in refinement is the system of his religious faith; this is so identified with his political institutions, as to fix an

Books however may sometimes be procured at the shops of different trades: for instance, I myself purchased a Romaic translation of the Persian Tales at the window of a tobacconist.

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indelible stamp upon all his habits, manners, and customs, which ac cordingly are found at the present day to vary very little, if at all, from the accounts transmitted to us by Besbequius and other early writers.

Feb. 19. This morning we received a letter, dated Prevesa, from Mr. Foresti, who had left Ioannina for that place several days before; and we were highly gratified by the intelligence of our army having passed the Pyrenees and entered France. This departure of the English envoy, the great accumulation of troops in the capital, the employment of a large body of Miriditi, together with several obscure hints from Mr. Pouqueville, all announced that some important action was near at hand, and various rumours were afloat upon the subject,

After breakfast I made an excursion upon the lake with Signore Nicolo, and in returning shot a fine eagle just as he was about to pounce upon a duck: this bird measured five feet eight inches from the extremities of his extended wings, and three feet two inches from the beak to the end of his claws: poor Antonietti in attempting to take him up received bloody marks of his talons upon his hand; he was then secured by one of the boatmen. On landing we were met by a priest with a long black beard, and a box, into which he requested us to put alms for the Panagia. I begged Signore Nicolo to repeat to him the reply of Antisthenes upon a similar occasion: Όν τρέφω τὴν μητέρα τῶν θεῶν Avis de répon“ For which," replied the papas in his zealous indig ἣν οι θεὸι τρέφεσιν nation, "he is undoubtedly damned;" appealing to Signore Nicolo for a confirmation of his assertion: Nicolo however, who is rather sceptical on these points, chose to leave the matter in doubt with the interrogative answer, ποῖος ἔιδεν, "who can tell?”

In the afternoon we went to hear vespers or evening service at the cathedral, called the Metropolis, adjoining to which is the palace of the archbishop: the edifice itself is neither large nor handsome; all that can be said of the chaunting is, that it was not disagreeable, though,

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VIZIR'S BATH-END OF CARNIVAL.

like the Greek singing in general, it was much indebted to the nasal organs of the performers: the women were all separated from the men in a gallery appropriated to them at the west end of the church, whose thick lattice-work hides all particular observation from the male congregation below. From hence we adjourned to the church dedicated to Santa Marina, which was founded by the father of our host, old Anastasi Bretto: this is the handsomest place of Christian worship that we saw in Turkey, and as profusely adorned with gilding as the second rate churches of Spain and Portugal. The singing was just concluded, but a deacon observing our entrance, came up with a large silver plate, upon which lay a wax taper and two pictures of the patron saint: we deposited thereon two dollars, and received in return each a picture; probably the offerings were not thought considerable enough to deserve the taper.

At night I went to the public bath, whilst Mr. Parker, who had long been disgusted with its filthy appearance, adjourned to one which is annexed to the palace of the vizir: but the state of his clothes when he returned home evidently proved that in this country no rank is a protection against the intrusion of certain animalculæ that carry on a constant war against mankind. This being the last day of carnival we were kept awake great part of the night by drunken parties of Greeks and Albanians, who seemed eager to seize that shadow of gaiety to which the real austerities of superstition were so soon about to succeed: the night was rainy, yet even this could not damp the ardour with which Bacchus had inspired them.

We were this time particularly unfortunate, for at the very dawn of day, when the Bacchanals had retired and we were just beginning to enjoy the comfort of repose, the loud and piercing shrieks of female distress prompting the idea that nothing less than murder was going forward under the roof, impel'ed us instantaneously from our beds: but before we had advanced so far as the outer gallery, whence the noise proceeded, Antonietti met and informed us that all this outcry

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arose from our old hostess, Nicolo's mother, to whom his highness the vizir had that morning sent a present of ten kiloes of wheat. He had scarcely finished his speech before the old lady herself ran up howling and crossing herself, entreating us to have compassion upon her and interfere in her behalf with the pasha. We were at first quite astonished how all this affliction could be caused by so handsome a gift. and were inclined to reproach her with maduess or ingratitude, until the bystanders informed us that this present must be paid for at double the market price, and that the messenger was then in the house waiting for the money. Upon this the old lady began to renew her lamentations, which we thought best to quiet by assisting her in paying for the wheat, rather than by annoying the vizir in what he might think an impertinent application. We found also that the calamity was common to all the inhabitants of Ioannina, each of whom had received a present according to his reputed means or the esteem in which he was held by his sovereign. The great extent of this avania tended still more to strengthen our conjectures that some important blow was about to be struck; for Ali never engages in an expedition or levies any troops without contriving some such method as this for the ways and means. Sometimes he takes similar measures merely to increase the contents of his treasury and improve his finances: once however he had nearly gone too far even for the most obdurate patience and well-practised slavery to bear. This occurred in the year 1812, when he took advantage of a deficient harvest to establish a monopoly of corn, prohibiting at the same time its importation from the fertile plains of Thessaly, whence Epirus is always in some measure supplied. On the 23d of June the poor people were reduced to such an extremity that they assembled in vast crowds around the serai of Litaritza, unawed by the presence of the tyrant, and with the most clamorous importunities demanded bread or death. One of the Albanian guards, of the tribe of Dgeges, fired his pistol amongst the multitude, and the rest were on the point of