Convenient markets appear in every part of the city. Coffee-houses are equally numerous, where the natives pass a great part of the day smoking and conversing. These commonly consist of one apartment, not very large. Only coffee and fire for the pipe are furnished. But at Damascus I afterwards saw coffee-houses remarkably large, some of them placed over running water. The furniture is however very simple, and unlike the splendid apartments, for the same purposes, to be seen in Constantinople. One, in particular, at Damascus, under the castle wall, is capable at a very moderate calculation of holding one thousand persons: it has no walls, but an extensive roof spreads over numerous benches, and it is encircled with trees and water. The number of small imposts in Egypt is almost inconceivable; they are estimated to amount to three hundred and sixty. One is for all goods crossing from Jiza to Kahira; a poor woman bringing a basket of eggs, worth two paras, must pay the fifth part of a para for passing. Upon the whole, the revenue can hardly be raised to a greater amount than it is. In May 1792 there was a famine, occasioned by various accidental circumstances; and wheat sold at 20 and 22 patackes the _ardeb_. In October 1796 it was at five patackes. When I made my inquiries at the latter period, the following prices of provisions were stated: Mutton, per rotal, 10 paras. Beef, ditto, 8 ditto. Sugar, per rotal, 20 to 25 paras. Sweet oil, ditto, 12 ditto. Milk, ditto, 4 ditto. Tobacco of Ladakîa, per oke, 45 to 70 paras. Fowls, small, 12 paras each. The recent history of Egypt, till the time of Ismaîl Bey, is sufficiently known. On the death of Ismaîl, Hassan Bey succeeded him in his office of Shech-el-bellad, governor of the city, and implying the precedence among the Beys. Hassan was soon expelled by Murad Bey, who held the office till the Capitan Pasha arrived from Constantinople with a fleet, and drove him into Upper Egypt. The Pasha, after satisfying his avarice, withdrew, and the Beys returned. Ibrahim Bey, who had been a slave of Ali Bey the Great, had however acquired such authority, that Murad was constrained to share the government with him; and they have since ruled Egypt, Ibrahim as _Shech-el-bellad_, and Murad as _Defter-dâr_. Mutual jealousies prevail between them, each seeking the destruction of the other. They however conspire together to recruit the number of the Mamlûks, and to collect treasure from all quarters. These are considered as usurpers by the Beys of Upper Egypt, who are favoured by the Porte; one of whom, named Ali, contrived to escape from Saïd into Syria, where he courted the nearest Pasha, Jezzâr of Akka, to support their interest; but that potent and able leader refused to listen to his suggestions, or amused him with false hopes.