'Collections of travels through Turky into Persia, and the East Indies. Giving an account of the present state of those countries, as also a full relation of the five years wars, between Aureng-Zebe and his brothers in their father's life time, about the succession. And a voyage made by the Great Mogul (Aureng-Zebe) with his Army from Dehli to Lahor, from Lahor to Bember, and from thence to the Kingdom of Kachemire, by the Mogols, call'd, the Paradise of the Indies. Together with a relation of the Kingdom of Japan and Tunkin, and of their particular manners and trade. To which is added a new description of the Grand Seignior's Seraglio, and also of all the Kingdoms that encompass the Euxine and Caspian Seas, being the travels of Monsieur TavernierBernier, and other great men.' [‎20] (569/1024)

20
A Relation of the Grand Seignors ShraglIo'
ne Regulati - 0n ^ ^ hand of that firfl Court, toT^dTliong a fp^d^Tlwr-
om of the infir -containing ftveral Appartrocnts or Chambers, and ferving for an Inhrma £ Ul:e ’
maty of the Se- whole Seraglio. The Gate of it is kept by an Eunuch, who has under hi t0
ragih. many People, employ’d in attending on, and minihring to the lick wr asrea£
fwerably to their quality, they diipole into convenient quarters in that’hoi rV”'
they may be better affitted, then in thofe which their indifpofition had obiL m i ere
to quit. The two principal Phyfttians, and the two principal Chirurgeom , u
they call Hequinz-bacbi, and Gen- ah- bacb f make their vilits there every dav' W ' 10ni
tain hours. A man cannot imagin a place better order’d and regulated then f i' C -
and the Grand Seignor himlelf lometimcs comes thither in perfon to take 13t 15:
account of the Sick and their condition, asalfo to enquire whether thev
treated, whether the Phyixuans viftt them often, and whether every Officer Tt
Infirmary perform dre duty incumbent on him. There is feldom any c l afP ° / • , e
in that Houfe, for as foon as one is gone out, another comes in: and thoueh iX
dehgn d only for luch as are fick, yet feveral perfons, who are well are brn t
thither, under pretence of indifpolition, or to enjoy themlelves a while or to wcpH '
out feme trouble or difeontent. They continue there for the fpace of ten or mJ*
daies, and are diverted, according to their mode, with a wretched kind of vocal 3
injtrumental Mufick, which begins betimes in the morning, and holds on till 11,2
1 he permilhon they have there to drink wine which they never have elfwherft
a greater inducement for their coming in thither than the mufick. But that nw
million, which, they would as twere conceale, and which the liiperlfition of thr
-Jw/y dares not publickly own, is accompany’d by a thoufand difficulties. They
not permitted to bring in any wine in the light of the Emucb,who Bands at the entrant
of the place: and if any one Ihould be fnrpriz’d in the doing of it, his puniflunoit
would be to receive three hundred baffinadoes, and a penalty of three hundred mJ
to be paid to thofe from whom he had.receiv’d them. But if hecan cunninelvsetm
with the Wine not having been Bopp’d at the Gate, affoon as he is got in he runs
no nlque at all, and may drink of it without fear of any chaflifement, though ’were
in the prefence of the Grand Seignor. . 6
fma)I f q uan n'y of Wine which can be got in by this Way, would fignife but
L fhe Mr. lltl: l e a W fo “ an y Pc ,°P J G if there were not feme other lels difficult contrivances
wary. fo w l PPv tnem therewith. And this is one of them. The Infirmary adjoins to
one fide of the Gardens, from which it is feparated only by a wall which is not
very high ; fo that the Boftangis, who find that wine goes off at a good rate, and
that tney who are within the Seraglio know not how to fpend their money do
m the night time, by ropes convey over the wall, fo many Borrachocs or Bags ct
JpucK-okins, full of wine, containing forty or fifty quarts, which fome other per-
ions of the Infirmary (land ready to receive. This way brings in abundance of
wme but not without fear of being fuppriz’d by the Boftan&bachL who goes the
rounds every night. ^ 3 o
fome perfons 'to r ^ or j s t ^ e drinking of Wine the rttain inducement which makes thofe counterfeit
be receiv'd in, f lc . P ei fons to leek out pretences, to go and pafs away fome daies in the Infirmary 5
notfc^. iniomuch that fome have the lewd artifice to put themfelves into a flight Feaver,
, which is prefently remov’d. A deteftable paffion, and which is in a manner na-
titiall £0 them, though it be againff nature, makes them fhidy all the imaginable
waies to iatisnc it. i his proves a hard matter for the Icboglans to do, while they
are in their Chambers obferv 5 d and watch’d night and day by fevere Overfeers, who
never pardon them the leaff mifdemeanour.
F01 though the Grand Seignor be himfelf fubjedf to the fame paffion, the very
name whereof caufes a horror* yet he orders cruel punifhments to be infliried on
th ofe who fhall prefume to imitate him. He does what hecan to prevent the milchief,
winch he would not have countenanc’d by his example, and impofes the preventi
on or it as a task upon the Eunuchs^ a vigilant fort of animals,' whofe Eyes are al-
Way cs open. But in the Infirmary, all thefe precautions prove fruidefs* the Eunuchs
belonging to that place being corrupted partly by prefents, partly by treats, or
being made drunk with wine, or. fome other liquors, they bring in thither fbme
young lads, of whom there is great ffore in the City of Conpnmopk. The better to
over-ieach the Emucb's y they put thofe young lads into the habits of the Hdvafu,
anc io the cheat fuccceds, in regard they are the Attendants on the Officers of
oeragho, and all the Errands they have to do in the City-# ^
The fubtilty of