The Argosy — page 244: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

230 Remembrances of Constantinople. burdened of their loads at the “ caravanserai,” part of which bore the inscription of “‘ café” over its door. Beyond the bridge and the green shades of the river valley, the purple mountains formed a lovely back- ground. Between us and the sea rose the hill, with the town on its further side, whose summit is crowned with the extensive ruins of a castle, where St. Polycarp, the pupil of St. John the Evangelist, suffered martyrdom. Facing us, on the other side of the stream, the dark cypresses of a cemetery stretched far as the eye could see. We remained as long as possible enjoying the beauty of the scene, and admiring the handsome Greek women, in their gold-embroidered jackets and coquettish coin-covered head-dresses, but all too soon the man-of-war's boat that brought us ashore was waiting to reconduct us to our vessel, and again for that night and another we had our fancies tortured with imaginings of Pandemonium. At last the sound of “tally” came no more. “Not a drum was heard ” falling with a thud into the well-laden hold, but a hissing and fizzing announced the getting up of steam; the swarms of black, hot- looking imps, who had, as a final operation, been putting coal on board, disappeared, and soon Smyrna and its ruins were memories of the past. Early on the following morning, being aroused by the holystoning of the deck, I opened my eyes with a feeling of thankfulness that only the normal désagréments of shipboard would come to molest the enjoyment of our voyage on the bright blue waters of the Mediter- ranean. Slowly I became conscious of the moving of some object on the wall opposite to me. I stared at it. Yes, it was certainly something alive. It came to a standstill, poised itself on its tail, and curving its body advanced its full length. It was a maggot; a long, fat maggot ; like those in filberts, but almost as large as a silkworm. Not far off was another, and another, and many more. Then, oh, horror, there flashed into my recollection how one of the officers of the ship had uttered something of certain mysterious “ friends” that might be expected to arrive with the figs, and how he had been frowned into silence, and that somehow the word ‘‘ maggots ” had been uttered. Then it was too true, and here they were by scores. At breakfast there was a serio-comic expression on everybody's face. Everybody had seen “them;” but no one yet knew the extent of. suffering they would occasion. The passengers all gladly betook themselves to the deck ; but whem night set in we were obliged to retire to our cabins. Then, indeed, the enemy. was upon us. Like Bishop Hatto’s rats—. ‘* Thro’ the walls by thousands they pour, And down thro’ the ceiling and up thro’ the floor, From the right and the left, from behind and before, 4 From within and without, from above and below.” : 1 comicbooks.com