purposes. The truth was, he was no stupid fellow, but a wily knave and a clever spy, and Lady Hester was often in the habit of employing him on secret missions—to find out the reason of any movement of the pasha's troops for instance, or to get a clue to some intrigue of the Emir Beshýr's. But she would say, "Osman is gone to town to see his sick mother;" and nobody dared to say otherwise.
January 27.—To-day the secretary requested me to acquaint Lady Hester that he wished to see her on important business. He was admitted, and showed a letter from his father, the English consular agent at Sayda,[1] signifying that, in the course of the day, he should be the bearer of a letter to Lady Hester Stanhope, which had been sent by Mr. Moore, Her Britannie Majesty's consul at Beyrout, which he was charged to deliver into her ladyship's own hands himself. I had retired when the secretary entered; but, when he was gone, Lady Hester sent for me, and I found her in a violent passion. "There is that man, the old Maltese," said she, "coming to pester me with his impertinence, but I have sent off his son to meet him
- ↑ The English consular agent at this time was Signor Abella, whose father was a Maltese: hence Mr. Abella was known as El Malty. The noble family of Testaferrata and Abella is the stock from which Signor Abella is descended; but in Turkey, Stemmata quid faciunt?
