Page:The Burton Holmes lectures; (IA burtonholmeslect04holm).pdf/28

 luxurious villas and hotels of Mustapha Supérieur, the most attractive suburb.

Arrival in the harbor recalls our gaze to more immediate surroundings. The New Mosque is the only feature in the foreground that tells us we are in the Orient, or more correctly, in an Oriental Occident, for Algiers we must remember is no farther east than Paris. The piles of merchandise on the wharves prove that commerce now flourishes as successfully as piracy thrived in former days.

"MIDWAY TROUSERS"

With no misgivings we approach the pirate shore, confident in the assurance that the days of piracy are ended. We have, in accordance with the advice of the guide-book, made a firm bargain with the Arab boatmen for the transfer of our baggage from steamer to hotel; but before permitting us to land, one of the modern pirates, clad in what my friend termed "Midway trousers," intimates that if we wish ever to get our baggage from his boat, it would be well for us to give an extra franc or two to swell the Coffee Fund of the crew. No Moslem with any self-respect would demand a "Pourboire," for this word suggests indulgence in alcoholic liquors, forbidden