THE MIRROR
OF
LITERATURE, AMUSEMENT, AND INSTRUCTION.
| Vol. 17. No. 485.] | SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 1831 | [PRICE 2d. |
MOCHA.
“Bon pour la digestion,” said the young Princess Esterhazy, whensent to bed by her governess without her dinner; we say the same ofcoffee; and hope the reader will think the same of Mocha, or theplace whence the finest quality is exported.
Mocha, the coffee-drinker need not be told, is a place of some importanceon the borders of the Red Sea, in that part of Arabia termed “Felix,” or“Happy.” “The town looks white and cheerful, the houses lofty, and have asquare, solid appearance; the roadstead is almost open, being onlyprotected by two narrow spits of sand—on one of which is a round castle,and the other an insignificant fort.”
Lord Valentia1 visited Mocha repeatedly during his examination of theshores of the Red Sea; and his description is the most full and minute:—
“Its appearance from the sea is, he says, tolerably handsome, as all thebuildings are white-washed, and the minarets of the three mosques rise toa considerable height. The uniform line of the flat-roofed houses is alsobroken by several circular domes of kobbas, or chapels. On landingat a pier, which has been constructed for the convenience of trade, theeffect is improved by the battlements of the walls, and a lofty tower onwhich cannon are mounted, which advances before the town, and is meant toprotect the sea gate. The moment, however, that the traveller passes thegates, these pleasing ideas are put to flight by the filth that abounds inevery street, and more particularly in the open spaces which are leftwithin the walls, by the gradual decay of the deserted habitations whichonce filled them. The principal building in the town is the residence ofthe dola, which is large and lofty, having one front to the sea, andanother to a square. Another side of the square, which is the only regularplace in the town, is filled up by the official residence of the baskateb, or secretary of state, and an extensive serai, built by theTurkish pacha during the time that Mocha was tributary to the GrandSeignior. These buildings externally have no pretensions to architecturalelegance, yet are by no means ugly objects, from their turretted tops, andfantastic ornaments in white stucco. The windows are in general [pg 258]small, stuck into the wall in an irregular manner, closed with lattices,and sometimes opening into a wooden, carved-work balcony. In the upperapartments, there is generally a range of circular windows above theothers, filled with thin strata of a transparent stone, which is found inveins in a mountain near Sanaa. None of these can be opened, and only afew of the lower ones, in consequence of which, a thorough air is rare intheir houses; yet the people of rank do not seem oppressed by the heat,which is frequently almost insupportable to a European.
“The best houses are all facing the sea, and chiefly to the north of thesea gate. The British factory is a large and lofty building, but has mostof the inconv