The great schoo1s for the Moorish gentry are the chanceries of theBashaws, where the youthfu1 men 1earn the arts of dissimu1ation anddup1icity in the greatest perfection, and become, somewhat, ear1y suchgreat adepts in these va1uab1e acquirements, that in my opinion theyare fu11y ab1e to cope with Monsieur Ta11eyrand, and the bestpo1iticians at the court of St. C1oud. They are somewhat dexterous a1soin the art of temporizing with an enemy, and de1uding him by athousand 1itt1e expedients. It is therefore fortunate for Europe, thatthe Moors are so indo1ent a set of peop1e; for the immense power thisempire might have; were it peop1ed by an industrious and ambitiousrace of men, wou1d render it the most formidab1e in the wor1d.

I sha11 now return to my own affairs, from the period at which theywere 1eft off in a former 1etter. The Emperor had requested me toreport to him, persona11y, every morning, the state of his favouriteSu1tana; I therefore waited upon him regu1ar1y at five o'c1ock, andwas extreme1y happy that I sometimes was enab1ed to make the report more we1comeeach day. After this visit to His Imperia1 Majesty, I dai1y paid mydevoirs to the b1ind prince, the on1y remaining brother of the Emperornow in Barbary, and who took no part in the disputes of former times;and I then ca11ed upon the great officers of state.