Secondly, these garments were, it should seem, of different colours, not by being made of striped materials, or by being embroidered, but by having many pieces of different colours sewed together: the original word fignifying rather small pieces than colours, of which our tranflators have given an intimation, in the margin of Gen. xxxvii. 3, explanatory of Joseph's dress, which appears to have been the fame with Tamar's.

This way of ornamenting their dress continues still in the East: Dr. Shaw himself mentions it, in the fame page in which he speaks of Tamar2. There he tells us that they wear shirts of linen, or cotton, or gauze, underneath their tunics. That the fleeves of these shirts are wide and open, and that " those, particularly, of the women, " are oftentimes of the richeft gauze, adorned “ with different-coloured ribbands, interchange"ably fewed to each other." A garment of this kind, would of course be a garment of divers pieces, and divers colours both.

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OBSERVATION XXXIII.

Rough as the Eastern warriors are, in their manners, they frequently wear very pompous vestments.

Lady Montague describing in her letters the pompous manner, in which she saw the Grand Seignor go to mosque, among other attendants she tells us she faw " the Aga of

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"the Janizaries," which term, it is wellknown, signifies the general of the most bonourable body of Turkish troops, " in a robe " of purple velvet, lined with silver tissue, " his horse led by two flaves richly dressed '." In another place this very agreeable female writer, observing that ancient customs still very much continue in the East, tells us that ladies pass their time at their looms, embroidering veils and robes, furrounded by their maids.

These outer garments, which her ladyship calls robes, and Dr. Shaw burnooses, which he tells us answer our cloaks, the Doctor expressly tells us fit very strait about the neck. All which circumstances put together, furnish out a very agreeable comment on Judges v. 39, as it lies in our translation: "Have they not sped? Have they not divi"ded the prey ?-To Sifera a prey of divers colours, a prey of divers colours of needle"work (or embroidery of divers colours of needle-work) on both fides, meet for the "necks of them that take the spoil."]

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OBSERVATION XXXIV.

Princes do not only order caffetans to be given to those they would honour, they sometimes have presented people with their own garments.

So d'Herbelot, I remember, telleth us, that when Sultan Selim, the son of Bajazet, * Vol. 2. p. 20, 21. P. 44, 45. 3 P. 225. P. 571.

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XXIV.

had defeated Cansou Gauri, Sultan of the Mamelukes of Ægypt, he assisted at prayers in a mosque at Aleppo, upon his triumphant return to Constantinople, and that the Imam of the mosque, having added at the close of the prayer these words, "May God preferve " Selim Khan, the servant and minister of "the two facred cities of Mecca and Medi" nah!" the title was so very agreeable to the Sultan, that he gave the robe that he had on to this Imam, and that from that time forward the Ottoman emperors have always used it in their letters patent, as kings of Ægypt. Maillet tells us the same story, but differs as to the place, which, according to him, was Damafcus; a circumstance of no consequence at all as to thefe remarks.

Just thus Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his garments, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle, I Sam. xviii. 4.

Bishop Patrick, I am afraid, does not represent this story with due fimplicity, when in his comment he tells us, this was done to express the most entire and perfect union. “ That he might look like another Jonathan,” are the words of that writer. Without doubt, the celebrated friendship between Jonathan and David now commenced; but this stripping himself of his robe, and putting it upon David, was no more than doing an high honour, I apprehend, to an inferior, in the eyes of 2 Let. 12. p. 153, 154

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the servants of Saul, according to modern Eastern customs, not intended to make him look like another Jonathan. Selim, we are fure, when he gave his robe to a Mohammedan ecclesiastic in the year 1519, had no intention to make that ecclefiaftic look like another Selim, or even to declare him the most intimate of his friends.

The Bishop's intrepretation seems to be the more strange, as something of the like nature has been practised by our own princes. I have feen a robe of queen Elizabeth, given by her majesty to one of our cities, and which, I think, its mayors used formerly to wear on great folemnities; but no one will suppose any thing more was intended by her, than by fultan Selim when he presented his robe to the Iman, both fimply intended to do an honour to those to whom they presented their robes; nor is there any ground to suppose Jonathan intended any thing different from them.

OBSERVATION XXXV.

As the dignity of a prince made the being arrayed in his clothes a mighty honour, so it should feem it did not allow of a malefactor's Jetting his eyes upon him. The majesty at least of the kings of Persia did not allow of this, as appears in the case of Haman, whose face was covered, as foon as the courtiers perceived Ahafuerus looked upon him in that light, Est. vii. 8.

XXV.

Some curious correspondent examples have been produced from antiquity, and may be met with in Pool's Synopfis; but perhaps it may be amusing to find this custom still continues, as well as useful, more clearly to afcertain the meaning of covering his face, which has been differently understood by learned men.

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I shall therefore set down from Dr. Pococke's travels, the account he gives of an artifice by which an Ægyptian Bey was taken off, which was this. A man being brought before him like a malefactor just taken, with his hands behind him as if tied, and a napkin put over his head, as malefactors commonly have, when he was brought before the Bey fuddenly shot him dead.

Harbonah's covering Haman's face then was the placing him before the king, as a malefactor to hear his doom.

[This fame circumstance also may be thought to be explanatory of a remarkable claufe in the prophecies of Ezekiel, who speaks of false prophetesses, as making “ Kerchiefs "upon the head of every stature" (or persons of all ages) " to hunt souls." Ezek. xiii. 18.

It is certain these prophetesses did two very different things, they flew (in prediction) those that were not to die; and they faved

* Vol. 1. p. 179. * The title they give to the greatest men of that country after the Bashaw.

the