Soon after Noon Abensur received a letter through Sumbel of Rabat from his wife dated 31 December [sic] wherein she writes they had had at Tangier 11 days of heavy & incessant rain. She had received his letter & Salim has of course mine from Rabat.
Soon afterward a Courier arrived from Mogador bringing letter to me from Mr Chaillet dated the 10th instant.
About 3 in the afternoon we were gladdened by the return from Tangier of the courier I had despatched from Rabat, he having left Tangier on the 5th instant about --(1) in the evening. He not only brought letters invaluable to us all, but Washington's much longed-for barometer & quite safe though loosened with the long travelling on our footman's back.
Messrs Peter & Frederick Schousboe arrived at 4 pm & brought additional packages of letters from my dear family but of dates prior to those I was now deeply engaged in reading.(2)
At 6 the Schousboes dined with us according
to my invitation sent out to them in the morning, and during dinner a message
was received from the Minister Ben
Dris through Seedy
Mohamed that the Sultan would give me audience for delivery
of my credential at 9 tomorrow morning. I was delightfully occupied in
reading my letters until midnight when I slept, & thank God passed
a better night that [sic] I have for some time past although again troubled
at an early hour, perhaps 4 am, & until I rose at 6 {283} by the numbness
& as it were dull rheumatic pains in my arms and hands.
| {281} My room frequently occupied by the Sultan during a morning has like most of their apartments a pretty tessellated pavement of tiles (manufactured . . . at Fas) is 28 feet long by 24 feet wide & about 15 feet high with 7 windows furnished with good English sashes, having each 12 square glass panes of respectable size. The 3 centre windows look down on charming avenue of very large olives to a pretty pavillion in the centre of the garden. |
1. EDH's blank
2. When Drummond-Hay left Tangier on 9 November the two sons of Peter Schousboe (Danish Consul (1800-1832) accompanied him in order to take the annual tribute to the Sultan. But the Pasha of Tangier then got orders that they were not to go together and held the Danes back. The Danes had hoped to get the tribute reduced and to obtain permission to export fruit. Both requests were refused. AHN Estado 6235/1, Antonio de Beramendí to Manuel González Salmón, Tangier, 8 December 1829 no 32 and 17 March 1830; no 65.